PMD2: Explorers of Destinies
by Mage of Hope
Summary: REWRITTEN!After an unexpected event,Konan,a short-tempered kid,wakes up as a Piplup! With no other choices,he creates an exploration team with a timid Chimchar,and a Pikachu that gets on his nerves,and starts to uncover why and how he's become a Piplup! Contains OCs! Rated T for violence,blood, swearing, and others! Plot twists! Konan singing! Humor! Adventure! Mystery!
1. Chapter 1

**Hey guys! This is my first ever Pokemon fic...which I had to redo for the third time. Sory I took so long! I had other things to do! Like I said before, this is my third time redoing this fic, so please bare with me! I'll get your OCs done too! For now, this is just the introduction, but next chapter is the real one!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon. only the Pokemon Company does. **

* * *

_Welcome! _

_This is the portal that leads to the world inherited only by Pokemon! Beyond this gateway, many new adventures and fresh experiences await your arrival!_

_Before you depart for adventure, you must answer some questions!_

_Be truthful when you answer them! Now, are you ready?_

_Then...let the questions begin!_

_Would you consider doing ten push-ups a day? _

**Heck yeah! That'll be so easy! **

_You're on a walk when you smell something delicious! What do you do? _

**Buy that delicious food!...Unless it's too expensive! **

_You heard a rumor that might make you rich! What do you do? _

**Whoa! Are you serious?! Gimme the details! Gimme! **

_How do you blow up a balloon? _

**Easy! By getting close to it, and pop it using a sharp object! **

_You want to reveal you like someone a whole bunch! What do you do? _

**Too easy! I meet up with them somewhere private, and then, with all my courage, I yell, "I LIKE-" **

_Your friend tells a joke that's horribly corny! How do you react? _

**Don't interrupt me! Anyways, jokes are really corny nowadays. **

_Do you get injured a lot? _

**Not really...except when I get into fights for my friends who get bullied. **

_You see a ball on the ground. What do you do? _

**Heheh...I pick it up, find the next bully I see bullying someone, and throw it directly towards their face! **

_What do you think of jungle exploration? _

**That'll be awesome! First, I'll be like Tarzan and swing on a vine and scream out- **

_You discover a secret passage in the basement! What do you do? _

**I told you not to interrupt the great me! And to answer your question, I'll enter it of course! **

_Your friend makes a spectacular fall! What do you do? _

**I help them up obviously! A friend always helps a friend! **

_You're daydreaming when your friend suddenly sprays you with water! What do you do? _

**Seriously? BRING ON THE WATER FIGHT! WHOO-HOO! **

_Have you ever upset a friend when you were fooling around? _

**Well, just once. But he forgave me after. **

_You attend a fine dinner at a friend's house! How do you behave? _

**I'll try to behave, but then again, I'll act like my true self! **

_You're in the final mile of a marathon, but the last stretch is exhausting! What will you do? _

**I'll endure it through the end! I'll win this for my team! **

_You have to move a heavy suitcase! What will you do? _

**If nobody can do it, then I guess the great me will have to carry it and get stronger! **

_If you don't know something, do you come clean and admit it? _

**Well, I'll find out what it is, and if I don't know it, I'll just ask the teach. **

_A fortune-teller says that you have a bad future ahead of you. How do you react? _

**A BAD FUTURE?! OH NO! IT'S THE END OF THE WORLD! I'M SORRY, GOD! I'M SORRRRYYYY! **

_Do you state your opinion even when it's not what everyone thinks? _

**I'M SOR-huh? Oh, yeah I do! Taht way, everyone will have a different idea. **

_You're on a stroll when a TV crew pounces on you for an interview! What do you do? _

**TV? Whoo-hoo! I'm on TV! Hi Mom and Dad!...Wait, what's the interview about? **

_Can you strike up conversations with new people easily? _

**Yeah, I could! ...Unless they're not too busy that is. **

_You think you hear someone call your name. But no one's around...so what was it? _

**Who cares? I probably imagined it. **

_You like something at a great bargain! What do you do? _

**Man! I really wanted to buy that, but it's too expensive! Oh well, might as well get a job so I can get enough money to buy that special item. **

_Do you think lies are neccessary? _

**...Actually, I'm not sure. I lie sometimes to stay out of- **

_Do you often forget to lock the door when you're out? _

**STOP INTERRUPTING! And anyways, maybe I do, maybe I don't. **

_Would you feel comfortable stating your opinion to an important person? _

**Isn't this question similar to that other question? And yeah, I'd feel relieved. **

_You spent forever stacking dominos...one more and you're done...oh no! You knocked them over! What do you do? _

**Get mad, take all my anger onto a bully, and walk home happily. **

_Do you get bothered by noise and ruckus around you? _

**If it's noise related to explosions, HECK NO! I LOVE THEM! **

_You've stuffed yourself with a good meal until desert arrives. What do you do? _

**Sweet! Desert! **

_You're eating at a restaurant when you realize everyone's gone! What do you do? _

**Go search for them! I can't pay the bill by myself! **

_You're in class when you realize you have to go to the restroom! What do you do? _

**Ask for permission to leave, of course! **

_You're in a play with friends. Which role do you prefer? _

**The main character of course! Otherwise known as the hero in the play! **

_You see a cake that's past its expiration date, but only by one day. What do you do? _

**I can't eat a cake that's expired! No way! **

_Someone who works at a store suggest an item that isn't quite what you're looking for. But you like this person, so what do you do? _

**I say that I don't want it. **

_Do you think anything goes by winning? _

**Hmmm...well, it depends, but I don't know. **

_What do you do with your allowance? _

**Spend it obviously! **

_You feel a burst of happiness! How about expressing it with a little dance? _

**Sure! It'll be called, "The Awesome Happiness Dance!" **

_You see a parade ocoming down the street. What do you do? _

**Cheer with the crowd! And howl as well! **

_You run into a new person that you haven't talked to very much before. What do you do? _

**Is there an end with these questions? Anyhow, I'll become friends with this guy, depending if he's good or not. **

_When walking in a group, do you tend to be in the front? _

**Not really, no. **

_Do you often cancel plans to meet others at the very last second? _

**Of course not! They're my friends! **

_You're about to take the last cookie when your friend wolfs it down! What do you do? _

**So what? I can just buy more! **

_You're told to wait in a big room. What do you do? _

**Search around the room, look for something interesting. I dunno. **

_Do you think you might be a genius? _

**Hmm...never actually thought of it. **

_Have you have any hobbies for a long time? _

**Yeah! You see, there's- **

_Do you like to do things according to plan? _

**Stop ignoring me! And yeah! That'd be awesome! **

_Have you accidentally revealed a personal secret that someone shared with you? _

**No!...Well, maybe. **

_You have a really important test tommorow! What do you do? _

**Easy! Just get a study group together and we can ace that test! **

_Your friend if crying in front of you! What do yuo do? _

**Someone bullied you? Tell me who did it, and I'll kick his- **

_The phone's ringing! What do you do? _

**Dang it! Stop interrupting! And I'll answer the phone! **

_You spot a deserted ship on the high seas! What do you think the ship holds? _

**Obviously, treasure! **

_Do you find yourself humming and singing often? _

**Nah, those are for girls! **

_Do you like being the center of attention? _

**Yeah I do! **

_Are you a city person or a country person? _

**Is there an Off button for these questions? And I'm a city person! **

_Finally...are you a boy or a girl? _

**...You're kidding me, right? I answered through like 20 questions for the past fifteen minutes, and you still don't know if I'm a guy or a girl? **

_...Are you a boy or a girl? _

**...Boy.**

_At long last, the questions have been answered. Now, I must look into your spirit before I can truly judge you. Now, touch this ribbon. _

**What am I supposed to do with a- **

_Relax...embrace yourself...calm down... _

_It is done. Your spirit is silver! _

**Whoa! The ribbon turned silver for some reason! Teach me how to do that! **

_Thank you for answering all those questions! You seems to be...the impish type! _

**Impish? What are you- **

_You really like to play a lot! And you enjoy eating as well! _

**Well, that part is true... **

_You love competition but you hate losing. Your personality seems crystal clear to others. With you,you see is what you get! _

**Yeah! Exactly! **

_You cheer others with your dazzling smile! _

**Well, I wouldn't be sure about the 'dazzling smile' part but- **

_But you may be afraid of showing what''s in your heart and revealing your true self. _

**Hey! I'm honest with people! **

_You may not want to keep your worries to yourself. You're only human, so ask your friends for advice when you need it. _

**You're right! Thanks mysterious- **

_So, an impish type should be..._

_A Piplup! _

**...What? **

_You're all set! Travel across foreign lands, solve mysteries, and make lots of new friends! Go forth, new adventurer! _

**WAIT WAIT WAIT WHAT?! **

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**Whew! This took several minutes, but it was worth it! Please review and give me any good ideas for this story!**


	2. Meet the amnesic and boastful Piplup!

**Hey guys! Thanks for reviewing...even though it's only a few reviews. But it's fine! Anyhow, I need some good ideas for my story, so please help! Also, before the chapter starts, I need to introduce my OCs!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon, only Pokemon Company does. **

* * *

**BOOM! **The thunder roared as the raging waves crashed each other in the stormy night. Two figures were seen in a small boat, trying not to fall into the stormy waters. Though it's completely dark, the two figures had to hang onto each other for safety and protection. Then, the two travelers were being attacked!

"W-whoa!" shouted the first traveler. "Are you alright?"

**CRASH! BOOM! **"NO! DON'T LET GO! Just a bit longer...come on!" The waves and storms were getting more tensed up, creating a turbulence. It's evidence that the travelers won't last long as long as the storms kept up.

**BAM! **"NO!"

"WAAAAHHHHHH!" both travelers screamed.

* * *

_The next day... _

An injured looking Piplup was seen washed up on the shoreline. The Piplup slowly opened his eyes, heavily breathing while laying on the sand.

_'Ugh...where the heck am I...?' _thought the Piplup sturggling to stay conscious. _'Wait...can't...drifting off...' _The Piplup closed his eyes, luckily, not dead, just fainted.

* * *

_Meanwhile... _

"Ok! This time, I will make it through this!" said a Chimchar. "This is it! Today, I have to steel my courage!"

"Yeah! Go for it, Natsu! I'll fully support you along the way!" cheered a Pikachu. "But...are you sure that you don't want me to go first again?"

Both Pokemon were in front of a huge entrance that looked like a Wigglytuff's head. The entrance, of course, was sealed up tight with jail-like cell bars. Before that, there was a grate in the ground the two of them had to pass. In order to avoid any confrontions with any intruders, strangers, or bad people, the guild probably made a system to determine which Pokemon to allow access. All the visitors had to do was stand on the grate, and wait to be determined by the gatekeepers.

"No, I'm sure! This time, I'll do it first!" said the Chimchar called Natsu. He walked towards the grate and stood on it.

"POKEMON DETECTED! POKEMON DETECTED!" yelled a voice that came out of nowhere, that startled Natsu. Actually, it didn't startled the Pikachu, because she's been here with her friend about fourteen times now.

"WHOSE FOOTPRINTS? WHOSE FOOTPRINTS?" called out voice #2.

"THE FOOTPRINTS ARE CHIMCHAR'S! THE FOOTPRINTS ARE CHIMCHAR'S!" Was it just Natsu and the Pikachu, or did the two gatekeepers sound more pissed than ever?

"Waaahh!" screamed Natsu who fell to the ground on his butt and hid behind his Pikachu friend. "Whew...that was too close!"

_'Oh man, this is like the fourteen time we've been here! Anybody would have gotten in by now!' _thought Pikachu worried about her friend.

"So that's the result, huh? I...I really don't have the courage to go in after all..." spoke Natsu sadly. "I keep telling myself that today might be the day but..."

"D-don't worry, Natsu!" said Pikachu trying to cheer her fire type friend up. "We'll get it next time! Just don't give up, alright?"

Natsu gave a small smile. "Thanks, Mia. I really appreciate you always trying to cheer me up, but..." Natsu pull out a small strange rock with a symbol on it from around his neck. The rock was tied to a rope, and used as a necklace for Natsu himself. "I thought that holding onto my personal treasure might inspire me and give me good luck but..." Natsu placed the strange necklace back to his neck. "I just can't do it. I'm such a coward."

"That's not true!" said the Pikachu called Mia.

"B-but I get so scared easily!"

"Just cause you're scared, doesn't necessarily make you a coward! Running away from the strong and taking it out on the weak is an more cowardly tactic! Please cheer up, Natsu! None of this si yuor fault! Let's take a little walk, and you'll calm down!"

"Okay then. I guess that could help," agreed Natsu.

After both of them walked away, two other Pokemon appeared from the bushes and have seemed to watch the whole scene unfold. The Koffing told his partner, Zubat, "Hey Zubat! Did ya get a load of that?"

"You bet I did!" said Zubat. "That little wimp ran off with his 'personal treasure!'"

"Do we go after him and his girlfriend?"

"You bet we do!" Both him and Koffing nodded and slowly chased after them.

Later, Natsu and Mia arrived at the beach, just a bit far from Treasure Town. They were amazed at the scenery of the bubbles the Krabbys made and the colorful red-blood sunset.

"Hey Mia, did you know?" asked Natsu turning to his young friend. "When the weather's good, the Krabby come down at sundown to blow bubbles. And all those bubbles catch the sun's rays, so it's always beautiful."

_'Natsu, you told me that already a lot of times,' _Mia wanted to say. Instead of spoiling his fun, she remained silent.

"This place always makes me feel better, you know?" asked Natsu. "I always like the scenery here, and it always cheers me up. Oh! But you cheered me up too, Mia!"

Mia had to smile at that. It always cheers her up when Natsu smiles and he's happy, but when he's depressed, it's up to her to cheer him up, since she's the only one who can do that.

"Hey, what's that?" questioned Natsu pointing to something. When both of them walked closer, Natsu shrieked, "Ahh! Hey, are you alright?!"

Both of them ran towards the unconscious Piplup, unaware if he's dead or alive. "N-no way...is he dead?!" cried out Natsu freaking out. He picked up a stick and started jabbing the Piplup with it several times while Mia was ready to throw a rock at the Piplup's body.

"GAAAAHHHH! STOP POKING ME YOU-!" screamed the Piplup in rage as he broke the stick with one hand.

"WAAHHHHH!" screamed Natsu shocked and surprised as he ran behind a huge rock to hide. Mia yelped a bit loud, and accidentally dropped the huge rock onto the Piplup's foot.

"AAAAAHHHHH! MY FREAKIN' FOOT!" yelled Piplup in pain. Panicking, Mia quickly helped Piplup by trying to painlessly remove the rock carefully without taking his own foot off. "Ow! Be careful!"

"Um...you're not a zombie, are you?" called out Natsu frightened. Piplup turned to where the voice was coming from and saw a Chimchar hiding behind a rock with his head sticking out.

_'H-he's staring right at me...he doesn't seem pretty harmless though,' _thought Natsu. He sheeplishly rubbed the back of his back before saying, "Um...you don't seem undead or anything, right? Hahaha..."

**THUD! **"Natsu!" cried Mia rushing to her friend's aid. While Natsu was walking out of his hiding spot, he tripped on a small rock on the way and fell facedown to the ground.

"S-sorry about that," apologized Natsu. "I tend to get clumsy sometimes. But you seemed alive enough! Hahaha. I was so scared! I thought that you were a zombie or so-"

"EEEHHH?!" screamed Piplup surprising both the Pikachu and Chimchar in front of him.

"Is something wrong?" asked Mia curiously as Natsu crawled back to his hiding spot in fear.

_'Yeah, there's something definitely wrong here,' _thought Piplup too shocked and confused to figure out what's going on. _'Are those two Pokemon really talking to me?' _

"U-um...are you okay?" asked Natsu stepping out from his hiding place. "Y-you look very-" **THUD! **

"Natsu!" cried Mia running to his aid once again.

"It's talking to me again," mumbled Piplup to himself. "Am I dreaming things? Did I eat something weird?"

"What's he muttering about?" questioned Mia to herself.

"Aha!" shouted Piplup like he just figured it out while thumping his fist onto his palm. This is all a dream! An imagination! I'll wake up any second now! Yeah, that's it! Yup! Annyyy second now!" He closed his eyes and just waited.

One second...two seconds...three seconds...four seconds...five seconds...

Piplup slowly opened his eyes and turned to see the Pikachu in front of the Chimchar, defending him as he hid behind her. "Ugh! Why haven't I woken up yet?" shouted Piplup ruffling his head in frustration. "They're still here!"

"T-that's a bit offensive!" sputtered the Chimchar trying to act brave. "We're Pokemon!"

'EXACTLY!" shouted Piplup pointing his fingers at both the Chimchar and Pikachu each. "Pokemon AREN'T supposed to talk! So stop talking and get out of my head!"

"H-huh?! What?!" sputtered the Chimchar waving his arms around frantically.

"Hey, don't talk to Natsu like that!" warned Mia angrily. "Besides, you're a Pokemon! And you're talking too!"

"STUPID! I'm no Pokemon! I'm a-!"

"Wha-? You're a what?" asked Natsu the Chimchar. Both Mia and him saw the Piplup glance at his hands-er, flippers, then run to a nearby bubble, grab it, and stare at the reflection of his face on the bubble. Piplup gawked at the sight of his reflection and felt his flippers releash the bubble slowly as it descended towards the sky until it popped.

"GYAAAAHHHH!" screamed Piplup. (Man, he's screaming a lot today, isn't he?) He turned to Natsu and grabbed him, shaking the poor Chimchar frantically and angrily. "Y-YOU! WHAT THE HECK DID YOU DO TO ME?! I'M SUPPOSED TO BE HUMAN!"

"W-what?! I-I didn't do anything!" cried Natsu.

"Ah! Natsu!" shouted Mia. She glanced at Piplup and shouted, "Thundershock!" Piplup got struck by the wek thunder-type attack and fell to the ground like a fried fish that got struck by lighting-oh, that is what happened.

'Wait a minute! A human? Aren't humans supposed to be a myth?!" gasped Natsu running behind Mia.

"A myth?! But you're staring at one now!" shouted Piplup.

"But...how matter how many times we look at you, you still look like a Piplup to us," said Natsu.

"I look one on the outside, but inside, I'm not!"

"I ddon't think that makes sense, and you better apologize to Natsu," demanded Mia. "Or else I'll 'thundershock' you again!"

"Alright! Alright! I'm sorry!" shouted Piplup not wanting to get hit by the weak thunderbolt again. _'Hold on, why am I apologizing? And it's true that it sounds crazy that I said that I'm a human that turned into a Piplup, but how did this happen? I'm positive that I was human! This has to be some kinda dream-no, nightmare!' _

"You know, you're kinda strange," said Mia. "Do you need some help? Like mental help?"

This made a angry anime vein at the back of Piplup's head. "No! I do NOT need any help! Especially from a girl! I need to wake up NOW!"

Meanwhile, Natsu was mumbling and thinking really hard about the situation. "Hmm...but it looks like you're already awake."

"Besides, if you are human, what's your name?" asked Mia.

"My name? It's Konan!"

"Konan? BUHAHAHAHAAH!" Natsu fell the ground and grabbed his sides while laughing and rolling around. "That's a funny name!"

"How is that funny?" asked Konan kicking Natsu, not too hard though. "And I suppose you're name isn't Chimchar, huh? And your name isn't Pikachu, right?" Konan turned to Mia.

"My name's Natsu!" said Natsu slowly getting up, but still laughing.

"And I'm Mia," replied Mia. "And you're not joking with us, are you? I hope this isn't a trick!"

"Of course not! Do you see me laughing?!" shrieked Konan.

"I guess he's not lying, Mia," decided Natsu. "After all, he yells a lot, he looks weird and funny, and he definitely doesn't act like a Pokemon at will-"

"I DARE you to finish that sentence! I double-no, TRIPLE dare you!" shotued Konan angrly shaking Natsu once more.

"Hahaha, at least he isn't a bad Pokemon," laughed Natsu while Mia was trying to pry him off Konan.

"And I'm not a Pokemon!"

"By the way, how did you wind up on the shores of the beach?" asked Natsu.

"Hmph!" Konan releashed Natsu and placed his hands behind his head casually. "How should I know? All I remember is my name and that I was human! I don't even know why you two are even talking to me!"

"Huh?! You really don't remember anything?!" asked Natsu.

"If I had, I would have told you eariler, right?"

"Hmm...what a strange problem," mumbled Natsu. "Maybe he has amnesia...?"

"You know, maybe you woke up **feeling **like a human," suggested Mia. "Or maybe you had a dream about becoming a human and wanted to be one."

"Yeah," agreed Natsu. "And you probably hit your head in an accident or something. After all, you were on the ground unconscious."

"Wope up...feeling like a human..?"wondered Konan. "But that's so stupid! I know I was human before! I just know it! And I feel like one too! I'm not kidding!"

'Well, if you're that determined and passionate, then I'm sorry we doubted you," apologized Mia politely.

"Yeah, I'm sorry too," apologized Natsu. "It's just that there are so many bad Pokemon lurking around and getting aggressive recently, like gangs, thugs, and evil criminals. I really hope that we don't run into one of them!"

Then, Konan notices two Pokemon creeping behind Mia and Natsu and yelled, "Watch out! Behind you!"

**BAM! **"AHHHHH!" screamed Natsu as he was attacked from behind by the Koffing and crashed towards the ground a few distances away. While he was being attacked, his strange rock necklace fell from around his neck to the ground.

"Na-KYA!" Mia yelled in pain after the Zubat tackled her pretty hard from behind.

"Oops! Sorry! We'll be taking this!" declared the Zubat picking up the strange rock necklace with his wing.

"Ahh! What are you doing?!" cried Natsu.

"Heheheh! We're stealing it of course!" answered Zubat.

"Hey! Give that back! That's not yours!" demanded Mia.

"Yes! P-please give it back!" begged Natsu.

"Fufufufu...do you honestly think your pleading and begging is going to convince us? Forget it!" said Koffing cracking. "If you really want it, then come and get it!"

This made Mia more frusterated and she yelled, "Give back Natsu's personal treasure!" She charged towards Koffing with quick speed, shouting, "Tackle attack!"

Unfortunely, Koffing predicted that the young Pikachu would do this, so he stopped her tackle by shouting, "Smog!" He spewed out poisonous gas and it hit Mia directly, thus poisoning her.

"Ack! I let my guard down!" coughed Mia to herself as she stood her ground and tried to endure the pain of the effects.

"I-I didn't want to do this, but I have no choice! Please forgive me!" pleaded Natsu charging towards the Koffing and his partner-in-crime. "Scratch!"

"Hmph! A weak attack! Supersonic!" yelled Zubat releashing small yellow circles from his mouth.

The yellow circles hit Natsu and he ended up getting confused and dizzy, not knowing where he was going. Then, he tripped on a rock and fell facedown. An epic fail.

_'So uncool,' _thought Konan.

"Ha! What a joke!" laughed Zubat. "You weaklings should know better than to mess with us!"

"Yeah! And the Chimchar couldn't even pass that stupid Diglett at the grate! And we've seen you like that for like, twenty times now!" crackled Koffing.

"I agree! I can't believe that you got scared of such a stupid test to get through the entrance! Pathetic!"

"Sh-shut up! Stop laughing at Natsu! *cough* You can laugh at me, but never *cough*laugh at Natsu! You don't know how *cough*much he had to go through just to*cough* become this brave! You guys *cough* are the cowards!" coughed Mia struggling to endure the poison effects and shouting back at the two thieves.

"Oh? Now a girl's going to defend that weakling Chimchar? How pathetic!" said Zubat.

"Zubat! We've got no time to be babbling with these weaklings anymore," informed Koffing.

"Yeah, let's skedaddle." Zubat turned to the three friends and said, "See ya chickens later." Both partners-in-crime headed inside a nearby cave.

"...Oh! Mia!" Natsu ran towards the poisoned Mia and handed her some sort of berry. "Here, eat this! It's a Pecha berry!"

"Thank you *cough* Natsu..." said Mia after taking it. After she chewed on the berry, she stood up striaght and looked better. "...I'm sorry that I let those thugs get away with your treasure. I let my guard down."

"No, it's alright! You were in far more danger!" ensured Natsu.

"Hey, what was that berry?" asked Konan.

"That was called a Pecha berry. They heal poisonous effects, so I gave one to Mia," explained Natsu. "But anyways...my personal trasure...it meant everything to me..."

Mia turned to Konan and asked, "Hey, we have to get back Natsu's treasure! Can you help us?"

"Um...why me?" asked Konan. "Is that treasure really important to you guys?"

"Yeah! Well, not for me, but for Natsu! Please help us!" begged Mia.

"Hmm...sure, why not? I've got nothing else to do," agreed Konan.

"Oh! Y-You will?! Oh thank you!" cried Natsu happily. "Let's go quickly!" Then, all three of them quickly entered the cave to give chase to the two thieves.

* * *

_Beach Cave B1F_

"Hey, why can't you guys just take them out? I mean, it's two against two. You guys would have easily taken them out!" said Konan as they were walking in the dungeon.

"Shut up," said Mia annoyed. "There may be some unfriendly Pokemon close by."

"Like some Pokemon would scare me! I'm a Piplup, and I can totally wipe the floor off those guys!" boasted Konan proudly.

"AAAAAAHHHHHH!" screamed an random Shellder that came out of nowhere.

"AAAAAAHHHHH!" screamed Konan out of surprise.

"AHHHHHH!"

"AAAHHHHHH!"

"AAAAAHHHHHH!"

"AAAAAAAAHHHHH-"

**ZAP! **The Shellder got hit by a small bolt of lighting by Mia and was immediantly defeated.

"Hey! I think I just leveled up!" said Konan happily.

"Yeah, but you didn't actually do anything," reminded Natsu.

"Hey, you didn't do anything either," argued back Konan.

"Hey look! There's the stairs!" called Natsu ignoring Konan.

"Hey! Don't ignore me! And what about the stairs?"

"Stairs can lead to the next floor. We're lucky we found it eariler or we would have to face more Pokemon," explained Natsu reliefed.

"But I wanted to fight more Pokemon so that I can level up more! Bring on the fight!" taunted Konan.

"Keep that up, and you'll end up fighting alone in a Monster House," wanred Mia.

"Ooh! You don't want to end up in a Monster House situation!" warned Natsu. "Those are really bad! Tons of powerful Pokemon will appear in the same area as you and you'll get ganged up by them!"

"Don't worry! I can take them on! About how many are there?"

"About twenty or thirty," answered Mia.

"...Ok! Moving on!"

* * *

_Beach Cave B2F_

"Hey guys! I found some weird blue berry!" called out Konan holding a blue berry.

Natsu looked at it and explained, "That's an Oran Berry. It can restore your HP completely! Works like magic!"

"Awesome!" Then, Natsu ate the berry.

"Natsu! Why did you eat the berry?!" shouted Mia strangling him. "Your HP was already healed! Now we just wasted an Oran Berry!"

"M-Mia! He just didn't know! Please let him go!" begged Natsu frantically.

"...Fine," agreed Mia letting him go.

"Man! You're such a tomboy, Mia!" said Konan getting a few distances away from Mia.

"Shh! I think I heard something!" whispered Natsu.

"Maybe it's your stomach rumbling or-COOL! TIME FOR A POKEMON BATTLE!" shouted Konan all excited.

"Konan!" whined Natsu. Behind some large rocks, there were two Shellos and a Kabuto walking around when they heard Konan's cry.

"Great! Why did you have to attract them?!" shouted Mia strangeling Konan.

"Ack! Ok I'm sorry! I'm sorry!"

"Anyways, we'll have to attack them now!" said Mia getting ready to attack.

"Um...how do you attack?" asked Konan confused.

"EH?!" screeched Natsu shocked.

"Water Pulse!" One Shellos opened his mouth and a blue ball of energy appeared in front if it. He then fires a spiraling steam of water towards Natsu.

"Gah!" screamed Natsu crashing towards a wall.

"Natsu! Thundershock!" cried Mia angrily at the Shellos who attacked Natsu, defeating it pretty quickly.

"Now we're talking!...How do you attack?" asked Konan.

"UGH! Just use any attack or help out Natsu! Hurry!" shouted Mia dodging an attack from the enemy.

"Hmm...what attack should I use...Ah! I know! Pound!" One of Konan's arms glowed white, and he striked a Kabuto with it. "Oh yeah! I-"

"Scratch!" The Kabuto counter attacked by managing to land a scratch on Konan.

"Ow! That freakin' hurt!" shouted Konan in pain.

"Ember!" Bolts of fire shot from Natsu's mouth towards the Kabuto, finishing it off.

"Yeah! Nice job Natsu!" cheered Konan giving a thumbs up. Natsu replied by weakly giving back a thumbs up.

"Thundershock!" cried Mia. A yellow lightning bolt aimed and hit the last remaining Shellos. Mia went over and picked up something. She squealed, "Yes yes yes! Natsu, hold on!"

Mia ran towards Natsu and handed him something. Curious, Konan went to see what was going on and saw Mia had handed Natsu an oran berry. "Hey! I thought you didn't have one!"

"The enemy had one, so I fed one to Natsu," replied Mia.

"Thanks Mia, I feel a lot better!" replied Natsu.

"Great! Let's get going!" said Konan walking ahead.

* * *

_Beach Cave B3F _

"Enemy incoming! Enemy incoming!" shouted Natsu pointing to three Corsolas.

"Perfect! One for each of us!" said Natsu preparing to attack. "I'm all pumped up!"

"Bubble!" cried all three Corsolas as they releash bubbles from their mouths. All of them realized that Natsu was a fire type due to the flame from his...bottom, so they decided to attack the weak one first.

"Natsu! Watch out!" shouted Mia running in front of him and shielding him. "Growl!" Mia opens her mouth and lets out a loud, piercing bleat that disorts the air and straight towards the bubbles. The bubbles didn't lower their speed or pop when the soundwave hit them. Instead, they attacked Mia dead on.

"Augh! Mia! You almost blew my ears off! Wait, do I even have ears?" wondered Konan.

"Mia! Are you alright?" asked Natsu concerned after the smoke cleared.

"I'm fine. It didn't do much damage since I'm a Electric-Type. But I forgot that Growl only lowers enemies' physical attacks, not their Special Attacks. Sorry," apologized Mia.

"It's fine. Thanks for protecting me though! If those bubbles hit me, then I would have been a goner!" thanked Natsu kindly.

Mia was glad she had red cheeks, because she felt like she was blushing and replied, "I-it was nothing! I'm your friend, and friends have to protect each other! Now let's go!"

"Hey guys! If you're done with your lovers' quarrel, then hurry up and help me!" shouted Konan desperately dodging the bubbles the Corselas created.

"We're just talking, not arguing! And I thought you wanted to fight more Pokemon! So we'll just stay here and watch while you take those three out!" shouted back Mia mischeviously.

"Hey! I resent that!" said Konan doding more bubbles.

"Are you saying you're scared then? Of three enemies who can whoop your butt?" taunted Mia.

"Heck no! I can do this by myself! Watch me! Pound!"

As Konan was battling the three Corsolas, Natsu asked Mia, "Why shouldn't we help Konan? I mean, it's three-against-one! He'll lose!"

"Don't worry, Natsu! If he's that determined, we can allow him to fight until he realizes that he's going to lose. Then we can help him out!" said Mia, knowing what she's doing.

"Y-you may be right," Natsu finally agreeing before turning back to the fight.

"Counter attack! Bubble!" yelled Konan countering the Corsolas' bubbles with his own white bubbles. "Pound!" He finally managed to defeat one of the Corsolas. Now there are only two left.

"Harden!" both female Corsolas sang. Their bodies now became sturdy and hard.

"Growl!" Konan opened his mouth and let out a large yell that disorted the air. "Now your attacks won't have much effect on me! Pound!" He charged towards the first Corsola, attempted to headbutt it...only to fall facedown to the ground while clutching his head.

"W-what?! What happened?" asked Natsu frantically.

"Oww...my head...! It hurts...!" complains Konan.

"...Let's go in and help, Natsu," ordered Mia jumping from her seat which was a rock. "Turns out he's inexperienced with battle after all."

"Wait wait wait!" stopped Konan. "I can handle this by myself!"

"Are you sure?" asked Mia.

"Positive! Haaaaaa!" Konan charged towards the two Corsolas...and grabbed their heads and smashed them together?!

"W-what does he think he's doing?!" asked Mia shocked at his attempt.

"He's...banging the two Corsolas' heads! Poor Corsolas!" said Natsu feeling sorry for the two female water-types.

"Haha! Take this and that! Ha! Never underestimate the great Konan!" said Konan gleefully as he continue to smash the two Corsolas heads.

"Ah! No, Konan! Please don't hurt them any longer!" begged Natsu.

Konan stopped banging the two Corsolas' heads and asked, "Why? They were the ones who attacked us first!"

"We'll go away if you let us go!" pleaded one of the Corsolas.

"See? Please let them go, Konan!" begged Natsu.

"Tch. Fine! Then don't get in our way next time!" warned Konan. The two Corsolas agreed and ran in a blink of an eye.

'Wow, you sure don't show mercy to your enemies, do you?" questioned Mia crossing her arms.

"Course I do! If they're nice!" said Konan letting out a grin. "Anyways-ooh! What's this?" Konan picked up a small seed and examined it closely.

"Oh! Seeds! There are many different kinds of seeds!" Natsu started to explain. "Like, there's a Blast Seed, which if you eat it, you can breath fire-"

"REALLY?! AWESOME!" squealed Konan excited. Then, he popped the seed into his mouth and breath fire right at Natsu's face.

"AAAHHHHH! FIRE! FIRE! IN MY FACE! AHHHHH!" screamed Konan running around in circles.

Konan started laughing until Mia hit him in the head for that. "Hey! Stop laughing!"

"Alright, alright! Jeez!" said Konan. He turned to Natsu, who was still running in circles and screaming. "Hey Natsu! You can stop running! You're not really on fire! Besides, even if you were, you're a fire-type!"

Natsu stopped and turned to Konan. "Oh yeah! Sorry for worrying you guys!"

"And I believe Konan owns you an apology for laughing at you, right Konan?~" asked Mia in a sweet tone.

_'Oohhhh...she's just trying to sweet talk to convince me to apologize to me...but if I don't, she'll Thundershock me again, and her Thundershocks are really painful!' _thought Konan. He turned to Natsu and asked, "Sorry for doing that, Natsu."

"It's okay! I forgive you!" said Natsu cheerfully. "By the way, I wasn't done explaining about the seeds yet, so please listen up! There's Blinker Seeds, Dough Seeds, Reviver Seeds, Plain Seeds, Golden Seeds..."

* * *

_Beach Cave B4F _

"Hey, how old are you guys anyways?" asked Konan with both his hands behind his head.

"That'[s a rude thing to ask!" scolded Mia.

"No, it's fine. I don't mind," replied Natsu. "I'm fourteen years old."

"Cool! I'm the same age as you!" said Konan. "What about you, Mia?"

"...I'm twelve years old," answered Mia calmly.

"Seriously? I never expected you to be-"

"Look out!" warned Mia getting into a battle position. In front of them was an enemy Shellder.

"Awesome! My turn!" shouted Konan charging towards the Shellder.

"Thundershock!" cried Mia, her body glowing yellow as she releashed a yellow lightning bolt from her body at the Shellder at quick accuracy. The bolt hit the Shellder and immediantly defeated it.

"Hey! That was my opponent, Mia!" complained Konan.

"Well, we have to hurry up, right? You do realize we're not here for fun and games?" asked Mia.

"Jeez, you're so impatient! Why don't you slow down a bit?" asked Konan.

"Because we have to get Natsu's treasure back!"

"What do you want with it anyways?"

"To give it back to Natsu of course! By the way, since you're a water type, you do realize that you can walk on water inside dungeons, right?"

"Huh? Wait, what about you guys?"

"If we did, we would wrap up somewhere in the dungeon, and it would take a while to find one another," answered Natsu.

"Strange," said Konan. "Oh! I know! Mia, come here!"

"Huh? What is it?" she asked as she approached him.

"Let's test it out!" said Konan playfully pushing Mia towards the water.

"Hey hey hey wa-AHHH!" As soon as she hit the water, she immediantly wrapped up somewhere.

"Whoa...it did work!" said Konan happily. "Awesome! I had my revenge! Haha! Take that Mia!"

"Ahhh! Where's Mia?! Ahh! Oh no! What if she's been abducted or something?! Ack!" shouted Natsu frantically looking for his friend.

"KONAN!" screamed a loud voice. Both boys felt a chilld run down their spines as they slowly turned. They saw Mia, all wet. Mia walked past Natsu and pushed Konan's head down into the water. "You're so dead!"

"Gak! Wah!" Konan cried as his head was underwater.

"H-hey guys! There's the stairs!" yelled Natsu pointing to the pair of stairs, lucky that he found it in time.

"Really? Great job Natsu!" encouraged Mia letting go of Konan as he rode up and gasped for breath.

"You could have killed me!" the Piplup complained.

"We're going! Stay here if you want!" called Mia as she followed Natsu down the stairs.

Konan also followed the group, mumbling how he was so going to get his revenge on a little girl.

* * *

_Beach Cave Pit _

"Looks like we're in the clear," Zubat finally announced.

"Yeah, those chickens couldn't reach here. Chickens will always be chickens," crackled Koffing.

"Not so fast!" shouted a female voice.

"Eh?!" Both Koffing and Zubat turned to see three battered, beaten-up, and exhausted familiar Pokemon staring in their direction. They realize it was the same Pikachu, Chimchar, and Piplup from before!

"Wow, it sucks to be you guys right now, being cornered," said Konan.

"G-give back my treasure! Please!" begged Natsu.

"Oh? You mean this?" Zubat pulled out the strange treasure Natsu mentioned eariler.

"Yes that! Please give it back! It's my precious treasure! It means everything to me!"

"It's no use, Natsu," ensured Mia. "They won't listen to reason. So we'll just force them too!"

"Oh, we're not just going to hand over to you like that," replied Zubat putting the treasure away.

"Yeah, now that you mentioned it, we might sell this thing for a high price," agreed Koffing.

"S-sell?!" squeaked Natsu.

"Why you-!" Just when Mia was about to store up electricity, she noticed that Konan had an arm in front of her.

"Hey you! The purple bowling ball and No-eyes! Yeah, I'm talking to you!" taunted Konan, shocking everyone.

"P-purple bowling ball...?!" said Koffing.

"No-Eyes?!" yelled Zubat irritated.

"Yeah! Now, listen up! I don't know what the heck's your problem, picking on the weak, and even stealing their stuff, especially their precious things they hold dear to! It ticks me off...and I mean Pokemon like you picking on the weak and running away from the strong! That's your type! You guys are cowards!" yelled Konan seriously.

"What?! Who do you think you are, calling us that?!" shouted Koffing angrily.

"Me? I'm the guy that's gonna defeat you!" answered Konan charging towards Zubat and Koffing.

"Well said, Konan! I completely agree on you with your speech! Let's teach these guys a lesson!" said Mia running alongside with Konan.

"Hah! Do you seriously think you can defeat us when yu'll all banged up? Well, you can try!" shouted Zubat preparing for battle. "Supersonic!" Zubat opened his mouth and releashed small yellow circles towards Mia and Konan.

Mia managed to dodge, but Konan took the attack head-on, not realizing the effects of the attacks. "Aha! That trick won't work on me! What was it supposed to do anyways? Confuse me? Nice try!" shouted Konan. "Hey Natsu! Come join us!"

Natsu shook his head. "I-I don't think I'm good at battling..."

"Whatever! Me and Mia will handle these guys!"

"Smokescreen!" shouted Koffing. He releashed thick dark green smoke from the holes covering his body and aimed them directly towards Mia.

"Tackle attack!" shouted Mia. She ran through the smoke and tackled Koffing head-on.

"Gah!"

"Wing Attack!" cried Zubat swooping close to Mia and hitting her with one of his wings.

"Ahhh!" screamed Mia in pain. "Hey Konan! A bit help here?!" She turned her head only to see Konan attacking some rocks with Pound. "The-?! KONAN!"

"Pound! Pound! Pound!" shouted Konan excited. Little did he know, he was attacking random rocks and not at his true opponents.

_'Ugh, he doesn't even know the Supersonic effect really did work on him!' _thought Mia annoyed as she tried to endure and dodge Koffing and Zubat's attacks. She yelled, "Hey Konan! Snap out of it! You're in a confused state and you're attacking rocks!"

"What? No way! I'm winning, and you're not helping!" yelled back Konan as he continued using Pound.

"She's telling the truth!" supported Natsu.

"Oh no! I'm no good against Pokemon who can fly! Now I can't reach the Zubat!" gasped Mia, trying to trick her enemies.

"This is getting annoying! How about you take the Pikachu, while I take on the Piplup?" asked Koffing.

"Good plan!"

_'Heh, you fell for it! Everyone knows Electric-types are stronger against Flying-Types!' _thought Mia grinning.

"Sludge!" hollered Koffing, spewing dark brown sludge from his mouth directly at Konan and Natsu.

"Gaaahhh!" both boys cried as they got hit by the attack. But good news was, that Konan snapped out of his confused state.

"Thundershock!" yelled Mia directly at Zubat, making the attack as effective as she could.

"Ahhhh! You tricked me!" yelled Zubat weakly and still able to fly. "Wing Attack!"

As Zubat was flying towards the already weak, and beaten-up Mia, Natsu thought as he was watching Mia's fight, _'Mia...she's going to get more hurt, and I'm not doing anything! I'm...her best friend! I...have to fight! I have to be...brave!' _Natsu's eyes widen up with determination to save his best friend.

"I-I'll help out too! Ember!" cried Natsu, shooting bolts of fire from his mouth. The bolts of fire hit Zubat directly, finishing him off.

"Zubat!" shouted Koffing.

"This is for confusing me! Bubble!" yelled Konan as loud as he could. He opened his beak, which glowed light blue, and a steam of blue bubbles aimed towards Koffing. Afterwards, Zubat adn Koffing were both on the ground, both fainted.

"Konan! You learned Bubblebeam!" shouted Natsu excited.

"Really?! A more stronger version than Bubble?! Awesome!" cheered Konan, throwing an air punch to the air.

"We did it, Natsu and Konan!" said Mia happily. "We won!" She turned to Natsu. "You did it, Natsu! You overcome your fear of fighting!" Next, to Konan. "I'm sorry if I treated you badly. It's just that I didn't trust you enough. But now, thanks for helping us!"

"Aw, no problem!" said Konan, accepting the apology.

"Owowowowow!" groaned Koffing.

"Ugh...we got beaten up badly..." complained Zubat. "How did we end up beaten by those wimps?"

After the two of them stood up and regain complete consciousness, Konan told them, "Don't even try to escape. We'll just take you down again, over and over and over!"

"Fine! Take it!" said Koffing throwing the treasure towards the three kids.

"Oh! My Relic Fragment!" exclaimed Natsu.

"And don't think you're so awesome! That battle was just a fluke!"

"Yeah, you just remember that!" agreed Zubat before he and Koffing left the group of three.

_'A fluke huh? You guys are just losers who won't admit their defeat,' _thought Konan.

"Am I ever glad I managed to get it back!" exclaimed Natsu happily. "And it's thanks to both Konan and Mia! Thank you guys!"

"Anytime!" said Konan sheeplishly rubbing the back of his head.

"Y-you don't need to thank me! I only did what was right!" said Mia embarrassed.

Once they got to the beach outside, Natsu once again thanked Mia and Konan for the work they did. Konan thought, _'I only helped because I happened to be there, so Mia could have done the job for me. But anyways, Natsu seems grateful. And it's nice to be apprciated.' _

Natsu pulled the strange rock tied to a rope from around his neck, and showed Konan. Konan glanced at it and saw a strange symbol on the rock. "This is what those guys stoled," he started to explain. "I call it my Relic Fragment. It's the one and only treasure that I love! You see, I like legends and stuff like that, and I always get excited when I hear tales and propercies!" Natsu looked at the sunset and continued, "Hidden, undiscovered land filled with treasure, new mysteries...uncharted territories veiled in darkness...but most importantly, new lands waiting to be discovered! Such places has to be filled with gold and treasure! And history! Wouldn't it be amazing if we made history?! That's what I always dreamed about ever since I was a little kid! So one day, me and Mia happened to come across a rock. Not just any ordinary rock, but there's a weird symbol on it too! My dream is to discover what that symbol is and what it leads to! The symbol might lead to a legendary place or something! But that's my opinion. And that's why I want to join an exploration team! This symbol must fit to something extremely important! And me and Mia are determined to find out what! So eariler, we tried joining as apprentices, but..."

"But what?" asked Konan confused.

"But...I chickened out. None of it was Mia's fault, it was mine."

"Hey, Natsu! Don't take all of the blame! I'm responsible for what happened too!" said Mia trying to cheer up her friend.

"No, it's alright, Mia. It's the truth," said Natsu smiling sadly.

"Hey Mia! How come you want to join too?" asked Konan.

"Me? Well...I want to explore different lands and solve mysteries as well!" answered Mia. "And...I gotta look after a certain someone."

"Ooh!~ A certain someone! Who is it? Is it someone that's already in the guild?~" teased Konan.

"Wha-?! No! It most certaintely is not!" said Mia embarrassed. "And I'm not interested in anyone in the moment! Besides, I'm too young!"

"Yeah, yeah! Whatever!" said Konan, knowing full well that Mia was trying to protect Natsu. I mean, it was obvious that she's been trying to protect him from the very start. Now, Konan had to find a way to fully know if Mia does like Natsu or not.

"So, what now, Konan? What are you planning to do now?" asked Natsu. "You lost your memory, and you somehow turned into a Pokemon. Do you have anywhere to go after this?"

"..." Actually, Konan hasn't thought of that and was caught speechless.

"If not, can I ask a favor?" continued Natsu. "Will you be willing to form an exploration team with me and Mia?"

Both Konan and Mia were surprised. "Whoa! Natsu, are you sure about this?" asked Mia.

"Yes, Mia. So, will you Konan? Please?"

_'W-whoa! What should I do?! This is all sudden!' _thought Konan frantically. _'I'm getting recurited right from the blue! And I don't even know what an exploration team is for the start! So, should I join them or what? Well...what the heck! I have no place to go, and I have no clue what I should do next. So, maybe teaming up with these guys might not be a bad idea. And I might find out who and what I am by hanging out with these guys. Ok then! It's settled!' _

"I've decided that I'm gonna join you guys!" announced Konan.

"Huh? Really? You'll form an exploration team with us?!" asked Natsu getting all excited. "Yes! Yes! Yes!"

"We've got a third member on our team now!" said Mia.

"I thought you didn't want me in your team?" questioned Konan.

"No, I was just surprised. Of course I wanted you in our team! Welcome to the team!" welcomed Mia happily.

"We're going to make a great combination! Let's do our best!" encouraged Natsu offering his hand, which both Mia and Konan took at the same time. "First, we go to Wigglytuff's Guild and sign up as apprentices! That's where we'll need to train as first-rank exploration teams!"

"I'm sure that the training will be tough you two," reminded Mia. "But let's put everything to it!"

"Yeah!" all three friends cheered as they threw an air punch to the air.

And so, Konan, Natsu, and Mia formed an exploration team. This turned out to be their very first step into many fantastic realms of adventures that await their arrival.

* * *

**Konan: In the next episode, it'll show me in more action!**

**Mia: Hey! Don't forget me and Natsu too! We're three of the four main characters!**

**Natsu: By the way, who's the fourth?**

**Konan: The authoress told us before that the fourth main character will be introduced right after the events of Temporal Tower. Heck, I don't even know what that tower is anyways.**

**Natsu: I hope it's filled with treasure! Ooh! Or more mysteries!**

**Mia: Yes! I can't wait for more episodes to come up!**

**Konan: The authoress hinted me that something might happen to you Mia!**

**Mia: What? Who?**

**Natsu: Is Mia going to die?! NOOO!**

**Konan: She didn't say! But she did say it was something of an emotional moment! I wonder if it's a love moment!~**

**Mia: *annoyed* UGH! You're still going on that?! No way! I'm not interested with anyone!**

**Konan: Not at the moment, no!**

**Natsu: Next time! The Guild's new apprentices! The first request!**

**Konan: You spoiled it for everyone!**

**Natsu: Not really. Anyone would guess what would happen in the next episode. Until then, stay tune! **

_Author's note: I'll have school in a few days, so it'll take a while to upload a new chapter, so you'll have to wait! Sorry!_


	3. The first day! Find the pink pearl!

**Hope: I'm back!**

**Konan: That was quick!**

**Hope: I decided to continue more of this!**

**Natsu: Well, we're just glad you're back!**

**Konan: And that means...more me action!**

**Mia: Hey! Don't forget me and Natsu!**

**Hope: Konan, do the disclaimer!**

**Konan: Why do I have to?**

**Hope: One, because I created you, so I can uncreate you, and second, you said you wanted more screentime, did you not?**

**Konan: Mage of Hope does not own Pokemon or any of its series, and Pokemon is owned by the Pokemon Company! Wait, doesn't that mean that this Pokemon Company are the real owners?**

**Hope: That's right! Now everyone, stay tune and get ready to read the rest of the episode! **

* * *

"How long is it till we get to the guild?" complained Konan.

"We're here," announced Natsu finally. Konan never expected to see a huge Wigglytuff's head as the entrance. Actually, he expected it to be something more awesome since he learned from Natsu that Wigglytuff's Guild was one of the most famous guilds in the world. Konan expected like a tall tower with an awesome skyscaper or something like that.

"To form an exploration team, you need to register your team here," Mia explained.

"Then, you have to train until you become a first-rate exploration team," finished Natsu.

"But...this is one of the most famous guilds ever?" asked Konan a bit unimpressed. "I mean, shouldn't it be more...awesome? Like the entrance for example!"

"Appearances don't have to do with anything," replied Mia. "All it matters is strength, power, and the heart, right Natsu? That's what you told me."

"Yeah!" agreed Natsu. "But...isn't it a bit odd? And...still..." Natsu shook his head. "No! I have to be strong! I've got Konan and Mia with me!"

"Are you talking to yourself?" asked Konan.

"Hey, Natsu's trying his best not to run away again, so don't interrupt him!" scolded Mia. They watched as Natsu walked and stepped on the grate.

"POKEMON DETECTED! POKEMON DETECTED!" cried out voice #1, surprising Konan.

"WHOSE FOOTPRINTS? WHOSE FOOTPRINTS?" called out voice #2.

"THE FOOTPRINT IS...Chimchar again."

"WHOA! There's a voice down there? Sweet!" shouted Konan excited.

"What did I say about interrupting Natsu?" asked Mia angrily.

"Waah! No! I...I have to be brave," mumbled Natsu trying his best not to run.

"...You may enter!" shouted voice #2. "Two other Pokemon are with you, so get them on the grate!"

"Alright!" cheered Natsu. "Now it's my-"

"I'll go next," replied Mia calmly.

"Hey hey hey! What the heck?!"

"POKEMON DETECTED! POKEMON DETECTED!"

"WHOSE FOOTPRINTS? WHOSE FOOTPRINTS?"

"The footprints are Pikachu's! The footprints are Pikachu's!"

"Hmmm...You may enter! Get your other friend to the grate now!"

But Konan was thinking of something else. He thought, _'Hmm...why did they make that grate? I know because so no one can fall down, but that's pretty stupid. They should have done a better system. They-' _

"HEY! Get your lazy butt in here and stand on the grate!"

"Fine, fine! I'm going!" said Konan annoyed at the one who yelled at him.

"POKEMON DETECTED! POKEMON DETECTED!"

"WHOSE FOOTPRINTS? WHOSE FOOTPRINTS?"

"THE FOOTPRINTS ARE...are..."

"Huh?! What's wrong?! Hey sentry! What's wrong, Diglett?!"

"The footprints are...maybe Piplup's! Maybe Piplup's!" called the sentry called Diglett.

"MAYBE?!"

"B-but it's not some footprint you see every day!"

"That's pretty stupid! Checking the footprints of every visitor you see, isn't that YOUR job, Diglett?!"

"Well, yeah! But...I don't know what to do!"

Meanwhile, Mia, Konan, and Natsu overheard the conversation and sweatdropped. "Are they arguing to each other?" asked Konan.

"Seems like it," said Natsu shrugging his shoulders.

"...Sorry to make you WAIT," apologized one of the Pokemon that were arguing. "Well, it's TRUE that you normally don't see Piplups around these parts much. But you three don't SEEM bad. Ok! You can enter!" The entry door cells opened up, causing the ground to rumble a bit.

All three friends were surprised at this action. "Yikes! It's so sudden!" cried Natsu. "But I'm glad we're finally able to gain access."

"Don't worry! We still got things to take care of inside," reminded Mia.

"Yeah! Let's go inside!" agreed Konan. When the three of them entered, they saw a hatch that had a ladder so that Pokemon could go down.

"Hey! There's a hatch that goes underground!" ponted out Natsu.

"Awesome! Maybe this guild isn't as bad as I thought!" exclaimed Konan. When the three friends climbed down, they saw multiple Pokemon chatting with each other.

"Wow! There are a lot of Pokemon!" exclaimed Natsu amazed with glittery eyes.

"Excuse me!" called out a voice behind them. All three turned around to see a bird Pokemon with a strange musical note as his head. "It was you three that came in, right?"

"Yes!" answered Natsu.

"And who are you?" asked Mia cautiously.

"I'm Chatot!~ I'm Master Wigglytuff's number one right-handed Pokemon! Now, shoo! Go away! We have no need for salespeople or your silly surveys! Off you go!~"

"W-what? That's not why we're here!" said Natsu. 'We're just here to form an exploration team!"

"W-what?!" squwaked Chatot. Then, he turned around and mumbled to himself, "Hmm...yes, yes...it is rare to see young kids want to become apprentices at this guild, especially how hard our training can be! Surely, they didn't get the memo about how many countless Pokemon have run away due to our bruteful training!"

Chatot didn't even notice that the three friends were hearing everything he said. The three friends sweatdropped, then started whispering to each other.

"Um...he does realize that we're actually hearing everything he says...right?" asked Mia.

"Dude, he said that there was bruteful training, that sounds scary," whispered Konan.

"But...what kind of training is he talking about?" whispered back Natsu. "Is the training really as scary just as he says?"

When Chatot heard Natsu say that, he frantically turned around and quickly replied, "N-no! Our training is as simple as a feather! Why, a baby Pokemon can even do it! Well, well, well!~ I wished you told me from the start that you wanted to become an exploration team!~ Hee-heee!~"

All three friends sweatdropped once more. _'Lier,' _thought Mia.

_'We DID try to tell you that, but NOOO! You wouldn't listen!' _thought Konan sarcastically.

_'Is Chatot telling the truth...or just lying?' _thought Natsu.

"Ok! Let's get your team sighed up! Follow me!~" sang Chatot motioning them to come. Soon, all four of them climbed down to the second floor, where Chatot started to explain, "This is the guild's second underground floor-"

"COOL! Is there like, more underground floors?! How many are there?! And how far are we?!" asked Konan excited.

"...Forgive him. He has a disease called, 'Impatient Idiocity,'" said Mia annoyed.

"Oh no! I hope it isn't contagious!" cried Natsu, actually believing Mia's sarcasm.

Everyone was silent for a moment...until Chatot cleared his throat and continued explaining, "Team registration is this way. Please follow me." The three friends follow Chatot and stop in front of a large strange door. Then, a window at the right catches both Natsu and Konan's attention.

"Wow! We're two floors underground, but we can still see outside!" exclaimed Natsu.

"That's so cool!" agreed Konan.

"Oh, please hush up!" scolded Chatot. "This guild is built on a side of the cliff! It's only natural that you would be able to see the outside!"

"...Oh," both boys said in unison.

"Now, we're about to enter Guildmaster Wigglytuff's chamber," said Chatot continuing. "And no matter what reason, and no matter what, you should NEVER, and I mean NEVER, anger the Guildmaster! Or else..."

"Or else what? He'll go...KABOOM?" asked Konan sarcastically.

"...Well, that's one way you can put it."

"Whoa, whoa whoa! I was only joking!"

"Anyways, Guildmaster! It's Chatot! I'm coming in!" As soon as they entered, they saw a big pink Pokemon with his back turned at them. "Guildmaster! I present to you, three Pokemon who wish to join our guild as apprentices!"

But Wigglytuff didn't reply. Mia thought he didn't hear what they said, or was just being rude by ignoring them. Konan thought he might be dead. Natsu thought he was sleeping.

Suddenly, Wigglytuff turned around swiftly, shocking everyone and happily said, "Hiya! I'm Wigglytuff, the guild's Guildmaster! Nice to meet you, friendly friends!" He skips towards Konan first, and starts shaking the stub of his arm at an insane speed, while Konan was petrified at the spot. Next, Wigglytuff did the same thiong to Natsu, then Mia.

"Um...Guildmaster?" called Chatot. "About the sighed up..."

"Oh! That's right! You three want to form an exploration team? Then, let's go for it! First, we must register your exploration team name! What would you like to be?"

"Um...ah..." all three friends gawked at the question, and quickly huddled together.

"I want Team Awesome," ordered Konan.

"No! Sounds...not cool enough! Natsu, what do you think?" asked Mia.

"Huh? W-well...I..."

"Ooh! Ooh! How about Team Dynamite!"

"What would we do with dynamite, Konan?"

"Explosives! Power! Mwah hahaahaha!"

Mia and Natsu sweatdropped at that one. "Ok...what about your idea, Natsu?"

"I...Um..."

"Ooh! How about, Flaming Comets?"

"I...ah..."

"No no wait! I got a better idea-"

"TEAM POKEPALS!" shrieked Natsu so loudly that Wigglytuff and Chatot managed to overhear the name.

"Wait, what?"

"Team Pokepals? I like it! I'll register it right now! Registering...registering...YOOM-TAH!" The YOOM-TAH was actually a Hyper Voice, and Chatot ducked down for cover. The new team, Team Pokepals weren't so lucky, were hit head-on, and slammed into the door.

"CONGRATULATIONS! From now on, you three are now offically Team Pokepals!~"

"Owww...my back..." whined Konan rubbing his back.

"Natsu...Konan...are you two alright?" asked Mia ignoring the pain in her head.

"Is getting slammed to a door head on means someone's ok?" asked Konan.

_'Jeez, I was just trying to be nice,' _thought Mia ready to go all-out on him for that comment.

"I'm okay, Mia," ensured Natsu rubbing his butt.

"I present to you your official Exploration equipment!" announced Wigglytuff setting a yellow box on the ground. Konan was the first to open it, and he and his friends gawked at the things inside like it was some treasure. They found three official exploration team badges, each for one of them, three official exploration team maps, once again each for them, three official exploration team bags, one red Defense Scarf, a Blue Bow, and a green Evasion Scarf. (he Evasion Scarf I made up)

"Whoa! We get these for free? Awesome!" said Konan taking the Blue Bow and putting it on his neck and proudly doing a pose. He also take one of everything as well.

"Heheh, now you look like some gentlemen or something," commented Mia, letting out a small, yet cute giggle.

"Yeah! We get these great things that'll help us during our journey!" agreed Natsu wrapping the red Defense Scarf around his neck, putting on one Exploration Team bag, and then placing the Exploration badge and map inside.

"I guess I take the last scarf then," replied Mia taking the green Evasion scarf and the other stuff.

"That's your Explorer Badge!" Wigglytuff started to explain. "It's proof of your official team identification! And there's the Wonder Map, which shows all the places around the world! The green Evasion Scarf increases your speed!" Wigglytuff points to Mia's scarf. "And the red Defense Scarf increases your defence!"

"What about mine? What does my bow do?" asked Konan, excited for the answer.

"Well...I don't know! I'm sorry, friendly friend! But maybe it's good for accessories!" said Wigglytuff cheerfully. Everyone sweatdropped at this. "At last, there's the Treasure Bag. It lets you carry items in dungeons! I'm sure they'll come in handy!"

"Really? Awesome!" exclaimed Konan happily.

"Thanks! We'll do our best! Right, Natsu and Konan?" asked Mia.

"Yeah!" both boys agreed.

"Wait, who made you leader?" asked Konan.

"Oh! That reminds me! Every exploration team must have a leader...so you must decide right now!"

"Really?" asked Natsu surprised. "Okay...um...I don't have any experience to become the leader...so...who wants to be it?"

"I'm going to be the leader!" shouted both Mia and Konan in unison. They looked at each other in shock.

Konan smiled a creepy smile and crossed his arms. "Oh, sorry. Did you say that you were going to be leader?"

Mia beamed back in response and she also crossed her arms. "As a matter of fact I did, so would you kindly let me take over the position?"

"The heck I will."

Chatot, Wigglytuff, and Natsu were watching this scene unfold as Konan and Mia were radiating a dark aura around them. They might as well put a sign that says, "**DANGER! DANGER! Never cross paths with these two, or you'll regret it." **Wigglytuff desperately said, "W-wait, friendly friends! Fighting is bad! No fighting please!"

"Squawk! That's right!" squawked Chatot frantically. "There will be absolutely no fighting! Especially in the Guildmaster's chambers! So...Natsu will decide who's the leader!"

"What?! Why me?!" squeaked Natsu.

"Well...you're the only one who can calm them down, and besides, you are their friend, right?" asked Chatot.

"W-well...you have a good point there. Okay! Guys! Please calm down!" begged Natsu.

"Natsu! Which one of us should be the leader? Me or Mia?" asked Konan.

"Natsu, you don't have to vote for me, you know," informed Mia getting soft. "I honestly don't care who's the leader."

"Hey! You're nice to Natsu, but not to me? What's your problem anyways? What did I ever do to you?" shouted Konan.

"Nothing! And I would be nice to you too if you didn't jump into battles every time you see one! In other words, I'll be nice to you if you laid off battles for once!"

"H-hey Wigglytuff-"

"That's Guildmaster Wigglytuff!" scolded Chatot.

"It's ok, Chatot! Friendly friend can call me Wigglytuff! Anyone can call me Wigglytuff! What do you need, friendly friend?"

"Is it possible to have two leaders?" asked Natsu. Mia and Konan looked surprised.

"Hmmm...if you have so many members in your team, you're allowed to have two members, but since you have three including yourself...No!"

_'Figures. Well, least I tried,' _thought Natsu before turning back to his friends, who was patiently waiting for his answer. Okay, maybe just Mia, Konan was the one getting impatient.

"Well? Hurry up and tell us who's the leader!" ordered Konan a bit harshly.

"Eek!"

"Konan!" scolded Mia.

"Um...ah..." Natsu closed his eyes and pointed to someone random. "I choose you!" Natsu slowly opened his eyes, and saw who he was pointing to.

It was Konan.

"Yeah! Yahoo! I get to be the leader!" bragged Konan as he was cheering.

"Ok then," replied Mia calmly.

"Wait, you serious? You're...not gonna object or something?" asked Konan, shocked.

"Nope. Not really."

"You mean...the whole argument was for nothing?"

"Pretty much."

"Anyways, do your very best to train!" cheered Wigglytuff.

"We will! Let's do our best, Mia and Konan!" encouraged Natsu.

"Alright!" both of them agreed.

Soon, Chatot escorted them to their rooms. "These are your beds," he said. He pointed at two bunk beds that were fully made.

"Awesome! We get bunk beds!" said Konan. "I take the top!"

"You three will be living here while you work for us," explained Chatot. "Starting tommorow will be busy for the three of you, so you'll have to wake up early! Don't stay up too late!~ That is all."

After he left, Mia turned to Natsu and said, "You can pick whatever bed you want, Natsu."

"Ok...I guess I'll pick the bottom bed on Konan's side."

"Whoo hoo! Now it's just us boys for this side!"

"I'll pick the bottom bed in the other unusable bunk bed," announced Mia walking towards the bottom bed of the other bunk bed.

"Hey Mia!" called Konan.

"Wha-OOF!" Mia got smacked in the face by a pillow that Konan threw.

"Um...Konan? What are you doing?" asked Natsu.

Konan made a mischevious grin. "PILLOW FIGHT!"

"Alright! I accept your challenge!" agreed Mia throwing a pillow at Konan.

**SWOOSH! **Konan managed to dodge the pillow easily. "Hahaha! Is that all you-" **THUD! **He got smacked by a second pillow, which happened to be his own pillow.

Mia smirked. "How do you like them apples now?"

An anime vein appeared at Konan's forehead. "Oh...you are DEAD!" He threw his pillow back at Mia, only more harder. Soon, Mia and Konan were in an all-out war with pillows, while Natsu watched the battle and used his own pillow for protection.

* * *

_Later, that night... _

After the whole pillow war, the three were exhausted, even though Natsu didn't do anything, and soon fell asleep. Then, Natsu whispered to both Mia and Konan, "Hey, are you two awake?"

"What is it, Natsu?" complained Konan rubbing his eyes.

"Yes?" asked Mia.

"Well, my heart's been pounding all day with every little thing," continued Nasu with his hands behind his head. "But I'm glad we finally came here. And I thought Wigglytuff might be scary, but he seems nice."

_'But he is a bit scary,' _thought Konan.

"And we're going to experience things we've never experienced before starting tommorow, but I'm not scared. In fact, I'm super excited! Heh, I'm starting to turn out a lot like Konan, except maybe not as hard-headed and hot-headed as he is."

"Hey! Watch it!"

"...I'm getting sleepy. Let's do our best, okay guys?"

"Of course," agreed Mia.

"You do realize how many times you've said that, right?" asked Konan a bit annoyed.

"Haha. You're right. Goodnight Mia and Konan."

'Goodnight."

"'Night." After Mia and Natsu went to sleep, Konan thought, _'Now that I'm an official apprentice at the guild, I've gotta admit, it's awesome! And it's fun to be friends with Natsu and Mia, even though Mia gets on my nerves sometimes. But, who am I? How did I turn into a Pokemon? Especially a Piplup? Ugh! Thinking won't do antyhing. I might as well catch some sleep. Goodnight guys.' _

* * *

_The next morning... _

"HEY! WAKE UP! WAKE UP ALREADY!" yelled a loud voice.

_'Ugh! Whoa! What's that loud noise?! My head is pounding like crazy!' _thought Konan. _'My eardrums feel like they're about to burst! What a stupid annoying loud voice!' _

"Uh...five more minutes mom..." groaned Konan twisting and turning his body.

"MOM?! I'M NOT YOUR MOMMY! HURRY UP AND WAKE UP YOU LAZY BONES!" screamed the purple Pokemon screaming.

"Ugh...my ears!" complained Natsu rubbing his eyes and then covering his ears.

"What is that?" questioned Mia waking up.

"Ugh...I'll wake up if you shut up..." groaned Konan.

"WAKE UP!" screamed Loudred as loud as he could. In fact, he screamed so loud, the ground shook a bit.

"Alright! I'm awake!" yelled Konan rubbing his eyes.

"I'm Loudred by the way," introduced the purple Pokemon. "I'm an apprentice, just like you guys are! If you're late for our morning briefing, you'll be seriously SORRY! Guildmaster Wigglytuff has a HUGE temper. SO if you make him even a bit mad..." Loudred turned around and shivered. "YIKES! That would be scary! It gives me GOOSBUMPS when I think about it!"

_'...Ok, I've now changed my point of view towards Wigglytuff,' _thought Konan a bit scared. _'If Wigglytuff was mad enough to make big guy shiver and Chatot scared, then he is not one person you would want to piss off!' _

Loudred turned around to face the. "So anyways, I'm not going to get in trouble just because of you rookies! So GET to IT!"

After Loudred left, the three friends were left dizzy and their ears about to bleed. "Ugh...my ears," groaned Natsu. "What did he say anyways?"

"He said something about getting ready, Natsu," answered Mia. Then, all three of them realized something.

"Oh yeah! We sighed up as apprentices at Wigglytuff's Guild yesterday!" said Natsu. "I forgot about that!"

"Wait a minute," interrupted Mia. 'That'll mean-"

"Ahh!" shouted Konan frantically. "We overslept! Let's hurry, guys!" When they finally arrived in the briefing room, they barely made it there as other guild members were already in there.

"You're LATE, rookies!" shouted Loudred angrily.

Chatot got mad at Loudred's angry voice. "Hush! Your voice is ridiculously loud!"

"Hmph!"

Chatot checked to make sure everyone was here. "It seems everyone is here. Ok!~ Let us conduct our morning address!~ Guildmaster! Everyone is here!~"

Then, Wigglytuff's door opened, and Wigglytuff stepped out."Thank you Guildmaster!~" sang Chatot. "Now, please address our morning routine!~"

"Zzzzzzzzz..." snored Wigglytuff.

_'! Is he...sleeping?! With his eyes opened?!' _thought Konan, Mia, and Natsu, freaked out. Everyone else was whispering comments about Wigglytuff, like, "Master Wigglytuff never ceases to amaze me! I can't believe he sleeps with his eyes open!" or, "He's asleep?!"

"Um...thank you sir for your...words or encouragement and wisdom!" said Chatot awkwardly.

_'Words of-HE'S SLEEPING FOR PETE'S SAKE!' _Konan wanted to shout out.

Chatot turned to everyone else and commanded, "Now that our Guildmaster has...said his words, let us not forget our morning cheers! Come on now! Also, we've got three new apprentices, so let's have them a turn at our morning routine, okay? A one! A two! A one-two-three!"

"ONE! DON'T SHIRK WORK!"

"One! Don't shirk work!" repeated Mia and Natsu.

Konan, deciding to mess around a bit, shouted, "One! DON'T SHRIEK WORK!" This earned him a glance from Chatot, and a few giggles from the guild members, and that included Wigglytuff.

"TWO! RUN AWAY AND PAY!"

"Two! Run away and pay!" repeated both Mia and Natsu.

"Two! RUN TODAY AND PLAY!" shouted Konan happily fooling around. This earn more giggles and a more angry glare from Chatot.

"THREE! SMILES GO FOR MILES!"

"Three! Smiles go for miles!"

"Three! MILES GO FOR SMILES!" Now, every apprentice including Wigglytuff struggled from laughing and even some of them were rolling on the ground.

"Ok Pokemon!~" sang Chatot forgetting about Konan for a second. "Time to introduce our three new apprentices! Come forth!" Soon, Mia, Natsu, and Konan were in front of the crowd of Pokemon.

"I'm the awesome Konan! Ready to take down any enemies and even Chatot!" boasted Konan pointing to himself, which earned him a glance from you-know-who.

"I-I-I'm Natsu! Pleasure to meet you!" sputtered Natsu nervously as he bowed his head.

"And I'm Mia! Just a warning, if you ever tease or even hurt any of my friends, YOU'LL SURELY REGRET IT," threatened Mia with a dark aura around her. Everyone felt the aura and quickly nodded in fear.

"Ok, Pokemon! Get to work!~" ordered Chatot.

"HOORAY!" They all cheered before scrambling.

Just when Konan was about to sneak away, Chatot cleared his throat. "Ah hem! Natsu, you bring your entire team here. That includes Konan as well."

_'Well, least I tried,' _thought Konan as he was walking towards Chatot with Mia and Natsu by his side.

Chatot continued. "Normally, I WOULD punish Konan for disobeying and messing up the morning routine-" He glares at Konan, who shivers a bit. "-But today, I'll let it go. Now, please follow me!" The four of them climbed the ladder up to the first floor, where most Pokemon gathered. When they arrived, Chatot went to the board on the left and explained, "Since you three are just rookies, we'll let you have this assignment! This is the Job Bulletin Board! Pokemon posts job requests here. You are aware that bad Pokemon have been gathering up in great numbers, right?"

"Yup," said Natsu nodding his head. "Because the flow of time is mess up, it's causing havoc, right? That's why bad Pokemon have started growing in numbers."

_'Time is getting messed up? Like in hours and minutes? What the heck are they talking about?!' _thought Konan getting more confused.

"Precisely," answered Chatot. "Because the time is messed up, more and more bad Pokemon have been lining up, one by one. Perhaps because of that, we have noticed an increase in jobs! And it is unknown if this is true or not, but perhaps due to the massbreak of time, more mystery dungeons have been appearing recently."

"Mystery dungeons?" questioned Konan.

"Hey, Konan!" said Natsu catching the Piplup's attention. "You know how we got my Relic Fragment back? The place where we found it was located in a mystery dungeon. A mystery dungeon changes every time you go in! There's different layouts and items! It's like a maze! If you faint in a dungeon, you magically lose all your money! Poof! And you can even lose half your items too! And finally, you get kicked out!"

"What?! That's not fair at all!" whined Konan.

"But! If you go inside, there are tons of places to explore!" objected Natsu, getting excited. "And there are fantastic places to explore!"

"My! You're quite intelligent, I see!" praised Chatot impressed. "Then, that'll makes things much easier! All jobs take place in mystery dungeons! So, let's look for a job that you can perform!" He looked at the board, found a request letter, and handed it to Konan.

"..." Konan didn't say anything.

"What's wrong, Konan?" asked Chatot.

"...I...don't know how to read,actually."

**THUD! **Chatot, Mia, and Natsu fell to the ground anime-style. Both Chatot and Mia both shouted, "WHAT THE HELL DO YOU MEAN YOU DON'T KNOW HOW TO READ?! EVERYONE KNOWS HOW TO READ!"

"Well, I'm sorry!" said Konan sarcastically. "Ever since I lost my memory, I can't write or read!"

Chatot turned to Natsu and Mia. "What's he talking about?"

Both Natsu and Mia sweatdropped. _'Has he really forgotten things that far?' _thought Mia and Natsu with their heads down.

Natsu cleared his throat. "ANYWAYS, I'll read it, Konan. Just hand that paper over to me."

Chatot mumbled, "That Konan really needs to learn how to read."

After Natsu was handed the request paper, he read it outloud for Konan to hear:

**Hello! My name's Spoink! A terrible outlaw has run off with my most precious treasure, my precious pearl! My precious pearl means everything to me! I can't just calm down when my precious pearl isn't in its proper place on my head! But I discovered that my precious pearl has been found in Drenched Bluff! But this bluff is reported to be unsafe! I could never go somewhere unsafe! O friendly explorers, would you be so kind as to fetch my precious pearl for me? -From Spoink **

Konan blinked. Then blinked again. Next, he rubbed his ears and shook his head to see if his ears were still in function. They still were. "Wait a minute," spoke up Konan. "What kind of job is this?! Our first request is to fetch a STUPID pearl?! That sounds so stupid! I'd rather go on a more exciting adventure with tons of dragons or search for treasure!"

"Even I have to agree with that," agreed Natsu with eyes gleaming. "Except for the dragon part, I want to explore new places and discover new history!"

"Hush!" ordered Chatot strictly.

"Yikes!" said Natsu and Konan. Natsu quickly hid behind Mia out of fear, which annoyed Konan. Konan was more annoyed at Chatot. Why spoil their fun? Even Mia seems to be surprised at Chatot's outburst, but regained calm a few seconds later.

"What kind of job is this? **What kind of job is this?!**" sqwawked Chatot jumping up and down with his wings flapping angrily. "You three are too immature! Now, I'll repeat all the warnings! If one of you three faint in a dungeon, you'll be forced out of there and you'll be sent back here! And you'll lose all your money and half your items! We're not letting a bunch of rookies fail on their first day just because they're whining of not going to an exciting adventure! You got that?"

_'Hey wait a minute, Natsu was the one who explained the warnings, not you. Don't take all the credit!' _thought Konan and Mia.

"I said, YOU GOT THAT?!"

"Y-yes sir!" answered all three surprised.

"Then go out there and get moving!"

"Ugh...fine," all three of them said while sweatdropping. The three of them ran out of there without even thinking of preparing or stocking up things. When they arrived, they took a moment to view the entrance of the dungeon, which was PRETTY big.

"...I say that Konan takes the lead," spoke up Natsu.

"Wait, say what?" asked Konan.

"Well, you were declared the leader, so of course you have to take the lead. Every leader always takes the lead," supported Mia. "And you have to do it through the dungeon!"

"What? Can't someone else take the role?"

"Oh, I'm sorry," started Mia sarcastically. 'And here I thought that you were brave, smart, and awesome like any other leader would be. Guess I was wrong."

That made Konan fill up with determination. 'Ok, I take it back! I'm gonna be the leader!"

_'Konan, you're just being fooled easily,' _thought Natsu sweatdropping. He pulled out the request paper once more and announced, "Spoink said her pearl was at B7F. And she did mention it was a dangerous place, so we should be careful."

"Got it," agreed Mia nodding.

"That doesn't seem too far! Let's go already!" ordered Konan walking towards the entrance.

* * *

_Drenched Bluff B1F _

"Cool! An Apple! My first item to place in my Tresure Bag!" exclaimed Konan placing an Apple he found inside his Treasure Bag.

"Hey Konan, sooner or later, you won't have someone to read requests for you," explained Natsu. "So, I decided to teach reading and writing to you!"

"Natsu has a point you know," agreed Mia. "You're going to learn how to read and write sooner or later."

"Why should I?" asked Konan placing his flippers behind his back.

"Reading and writing are very important!" argued Mia. "If you refuse to learn, we'll just have to go the hard way."

"The hard way? What do you mean?" asked Konan suspiciously.

"You intruders! DIE!" shouted an Anorith along with an Lileep.

Mia got angry and yelled, "YOU DIE! We were in the middle of discussing something important! Thundershock!" The critical yellow lightning blasted both water/water and bug type Pokemon and defeated them easily.

"...That's the hard way," answered Natsu, shuddering at Mia's power.

"...Ok, I'll learn how to read and write," replied Konan a bit freaked out.

* * *

_Drenched Bluff B2F _

"So, A is like for apple, and B is for um...Bubbles! And C is for cat!" Natsu started explaining to Konan using a board of the Alphabet.

"Oh! I see! So, D is for dog!" said Konan thumping his fist into his palm proudly. "Wow! This is so much easier than I expected!"

"Hey! Enemies!" warned Mia pointing to her direction. An Anorith, and two Chinglings appeared at their area.

"Don't worry! I'll take them!" shouted Konan getting into a fighting position.

"Harden!" cried Anorith. His body flashes white and shines, increasing his defense.

"A is for ANORITH!" shouted Konan charging towards the hardened Pokemon. "B is for BUBBLEBEAM!" Konan opened his beak and a stream of blue bubbles hit the Anorith, but wasn't even to defeat him. "Bubblebeam again!" This time, with the power of his Blue Bow, he was able to defeat the Anorith.

Mia and Natsu, who were watching the battle, just sweatdropped. _'He's using the alphabet during battle?' _

"Where was I? Oh yeah! C is for CHINGLINGS!" yelled Konan running up towards the two Chinglings.

After the Chinglings got out of their shock, both of them screamed, "GROWL!" They opened their mouths and releashed a loud, piercing shriek, which Konan, Natsu, and Mia had to cover their ears due to the scream.

"You think that's enough to defeat me? D is for DISAPPOINTMENT! Now, Pound!" Two of Konan's arms glowed white and he striked the two Chinglings with them, but they didn't have much effect, only a little damage.

"YOU'RE the weakling here!" pointed out both the Chinglings in unison. "WRAP!" Both Chinglings extended both of their red and white tassels and wrapped Konan around with them tightly.

"Konan! Growl lowers your physical attack!" called Natsu.

"Plan carefully when you attack, moron!" insulted Mia.

"I'm...not done yet...!" cried Konan. "Time for a counterattack! GROWL!" He opened his mouth and paid back the Chinglings by producing a Growl similar to theirs, only maybe not too loud? But it was enough to let the Chinglings releash the ropes around him a bit. Konan broke out of his ropes and shouted, "Bubblebeam!" The stream of Bubbles hit the Chinglings, but they still appeared to be standing!

"My turn!" shouted Mia. "Thunder-"

"N-no! Let me do it, Mia!" ordered Natsu. "Leer!" Natsu tries his best to glare at the Chinglings, and surprisely, his glares were so freakin' scary, it even creeped out Konan as well. "Um...I'm sorry for this! Scratch attack!" Natsu closed his eyes and started scratches the two enemies with his fingers, thus defeating them.

"Awesome, Natsu! I never knew you had it in you to have so much attack power!" cheered Konan.

"I...I did it? I...did it! I...I don't think I'm afraid of fighting anymore!" said Natsu a bit shock and happy at the same time. "And...I think I leveled up to Level 9!"

Mia was quite proud of Natsu. "Nice job, Natsu! You're doing great! Soon, you won't hesitate to attack to defend yourself!"

"Hey! I leveled up too! Level 9! Whoo!" cheered Konan.

"And I'm...level 8."

"Ha! I'm one level ahead of you, Mia! Guess I'm stronger than you, huh?"

'What was that-?!"

"Hey guys! I think I found the stairs!" pointed out Natsu frantically trying to stop the argument. "Let's hurry up!"

* * *

_Drenched Bluff B3F _

"HEY GUYS! HEY GUYS!" screamed Konan jumping up and down filled with excitment.

"What is it?" asked Natsu after he and Mia collected all the items they could find in the floor.

"I FOUND GOLD!"

"REALLY?!" squealed Natsu rushing towards his companion. Then, his smile dropped when he saw what Konan was holding. "Oh. Konan, this isn't gold. Well, actually it is, but it's Poke Gald." (I'll just put Poke Gald as the Pokemon money for the story)

"Yay!...What?"

"Konan, Poke Gald is money we use in this world. They'll help you through your adventures and alow you to buy things," explained Mia.

"Awesome! ...So, how much is this piece of coin?" asked Konan examining it.

"29 Poke Gald," answered Natsu.

"How do you know?"

"It says in the front. The amount of money in each Poke Gald is always in the front."

Konan turned the coin around and saw '29 Poke Gald' on it. "Oh...well that's a bummer. I was expecting more than this, but oh well. I know! Let's search for more Poke Gald in this floor! It'll be like a treasure hunt! Come on!"

"Great idea, Konan!" agreed Natsu. "Wait for me!" He chased after Konan, who was running deeper into the third floor.

"W-wait a minute, guys!" called Mia. She sighed and mumbled, "And they didn't even notice that we were already near the stairs. Oh well." She chased after Natsu and Konan as well.

* * *

_Drenched Bluff B4F _

"Hey! It's been a while since I've seen Geo Pebbles!" said Natsu picking 5 pebbles up.

"What good are pebbles?" asked Konan. Realizing that Natsu and Mia's world was different than his, he asked excitedly, "If you throw them at enemies, do they explode?! Or-or do they knock Pokemon out in an instant?! Or does something more awesome happen?!"

"...Actually, they inflict a bit damage on enemies, nothing more," said Natsu awkwardly.

"...Well that's no fair!" Konan grabbed a rock and threw it at a random direction. There was a Chingling coming towards a random direction, and just her luck, it hit her dead on, without mercy, and pretty dang hard. She never predicted it coming, and was knocked out instantly.

"..." Konan, Mia, and Natsu gawked at what happened and their eyes went wide. Then, Natsu started whining of the poor Chingling and that she didn't deserve that, and Mia started yelling at Konan comically that that rock could have knocked out Natsu and that they were all lucky that Konan threw the rock at an approaching undetected enemy.

After a while, everyone started calming down and Natsu let Konan take the Geo Pebbles due to the event that happened eariler. Everything seemed to be calm...until Konan found a sleeping Shellos.

"WHOO! ROCK THROWING TIME!" cheered Konan getting out the Geo Pebbles like they were amno. Just when the Shellos was about to wake up, Konan threw all of his Geo Pebbles at it, defeating it quickly and making it go back to sleep.

"Konan! That Pokemon was already asleep! We didn't need to knock it out again like that!" whined Natsu.

"...Oops."

"Jeez, Konan! There is no end to your lust of excitment for battle, is there?" questioned Mia before turning her back at him. This was the moment Konan had been waiting for. As soon as she turned around, Konan pulled out an EXTRA Geo Pebble from his back. Natsu's eyes widen at the sight of the extra pebble, but didn't do anything. Then, Konan threw the pebble.

**Wham. **The pebble hit the back of Mia's head, and fell down after it hit her. Mia slowly turned around, surrounded by a dark aura. "Konan..."

"Eep!" Natsu hid behind a rock and cowered in fear.

"YOU!" She began chasing after Konan, who was laughing along the way, thinking of one of the best ways to get revenge while he was avoiding Mia's electric attacks.

* * *

_Drenched Bluff B5F _

"Whew! Finally, we-"

"SHH!" whispered both Natsu and Mia. Konan looked confused, until he saw what they were pointing at. A Lileep was sleeping, actually, Konan couldn't tell if that Lileep was sleeping or not.

"So what? We can take it out!" whispered Konan.

"It's better if we don't wake it up. That way, it'll leave us alone," suggested Natsu.

"Fine! Let's go," agreed Konan. Just when they were about to leave, Konan stepped on a stick, thus waking up the Lileep.

Everyone was frozen...until Konan ordered, "Um...kill the witness! Bubblebeam!"

"Thundershock!"

"E-ember!" All three Special Attacks blasted the Lileep and defeated it without mercy.

"...I feel like we're the bad guys now," admitted Natsu feeling guilt.

"Don't worry, Natsu! Someone was bound to defeat it sooner or later!" comforted Mia.

"Ooh! Pecha Berries! And 31 Poke Gald!" shouted Konan, interrupting Mia trying to comfort her best friend and gathering two Pecha Berries and the Poke Gald into his pouch.

Mia just glared at the Piplup. "Excuse me?"

"Oops! Sorry!"

"No, it's alright," ensured Natsu. Then, he shouted, "We got company!" Both Mia and Konan turned to see an Anorith, a Chingling, and a Shellos, preparing for battle.

"I take the Anorith!" called Konan charging towards it.

Mia turned to Natsu. "Natsu, I'll handle the Shellos, can you handle the Chingling alone?"

"O-of course! I...I won't be scared anymore!"

"That's good to know! Let's go!"

"Scratch!" Anorith repeatedly scratches Konan with its claws.

"Ow! Ooh! Eek! Ah!" cried Konan in pain. As soon as he distanced himself away from Anorith, he shouted, "That really hurted you know! Bubblebeam!" The steam of blue bubbles hit Anorith, but not enough to fully defeat it.

"Harden!" Anorith's body flashed white, thus increasing its defence.

"I feel like I'm getting deja vu here," mumbled Konan. "Pound!" His left arm glowed and he smacked the Anorith with it, but due to the effects of Harden, Anorith wasn't taken out!

"Scratch!" Once again, Anorith started repeatedly scratching Konan.

As Anorith was scratching, Konan shouted, "Why you-!" He got out a seed and shouted, "Hope...this works...!" He swallowed the seed and then, unexpectedly, flames bursted out of his mouth like he was breathing fire. But, this also defeated Anorith as well, since Konan was at close range to the now fried Anorith. Konan cheered, "Yeah! Let's do that again!"

"Thundershock!" commanded Mia. Her body glowed yellow, and she releashed yellow lightning towards Shellos, defeating it quickly than expected.

Meanwhile, Natsu was battling Chingling, and having a bit of a hard time due to his emotions and Chingling's moves. "E-ember!" Natsu opened his mouth, and small weak flames poured out, not having much effect against the Chingling.

"What a weak attack!" insulted Chingling. "Growl!" It opened its mouth and shrieked a high-pitched sound, making Natsu close his eyes and cover his ears. This gave Chingling an advantage. "Wrap!" It used its red and white tassels to wrap Natsu's body around tightly.

"Gah!" cried Natsu struggling to get out. He knew he was weak, and scared of many different things. He knows his weaknesses, and his emotions and caring feeling are part of his weaknesses, but still...he wants to keep them, because if not, he would have been cold-hearted if he abandoned his emotions. But in battle, sometimes it was best to let go of your emotions.

"E-EMBER!" screamed Natsu, shooting bolts of fire from his mouth. They struck the Chingling critically, defeating it and making it let go of the ropes attaching to Natsu.

"Whoa...that was awesome, Natsu!" shouted Konan excited as they ran to the Chimchar's aid.

"Natsu, are you alright?" asked Mia concerned.

"I'm fine, thanks," thanked Natsu a bit exhausted. "Anyways, there's the stairs, so we should get going."

* * *

_Drenched Bluff B6F _

"Hey! What kind of seed is this, Natsu?" asked Konan handing the strange seed to Natsu.

Natsu examined it before answering, "It's a X-Eye Seed! Be careful not to eat it! It'll leave you confused and make you attack illusions and-"

"Natsu? He ate it," answered Mia.

"Oh no!" Natsu turned to Konan, who was walking around in a dizzy state, and wandering around like he was drunk.

"W-whoa...look at the pretty stars..." Konan spoke. Then, he shouted, "An enemy! Bubblebeam!" He shot out bubbles from his mouth towards Mia and Natsu.

"Look out!" cried Mia shielding Natsu. She took the barrage of bubbles and gain heavy damage. 'Aaahhh!"

"Mia! Are you alright?" cried Natsu concerned.

"I'm fine...but why is Konan attacking us?"

"Um...the X-Eye Seed effects also makes the eater attack his or her foes and friends, so basically, Konan can attack anyone he sees, and consider that an enemy."

"How long will the effect last?"

"Maybe a few minutes later?"

"BUBBLEBEAM!" screamed Piplup shooting Bubblebeams from his mouth all around the area.

"What now?!" cried Mia as she and Natsu hid behind a large rock.

"Oh! And one of the effects is that Konan can now see enemies everywhere even if they aren't there!"

"That's just great! Real great!"

About several minutes later, the whole floor was a disaster and looked ready to be torn apart, and Konan just about defeated every Pokemon in there, except for Mia and Natsu, who were safe. Aftera short scolding from Natsu, and a few Thundershocks from Mia, Konan was taught about the effects of the X-Eye Seed and learned not to mess with the power of seeds.

* * *

_Drenched Bluff B7F _

"About damn time we got here! Now where's the pearl?" wondered Konan as he and his team searched around.

Natsu pointed out, "Hey! Is that it?" Mia and Konan saw a pink shining pearl on the ground near some streams.

"Holy snap! This pearl could cost a fortune!" said Konan excited as he picked up the pearl.

"Remember, we came here to retrieve the pearl, not sell it!" reminded Mia.

"I know, I know! Jeez!" said Konan a bit annoyed. "Since we found the pearl, let's hurry up and go back-"

"What? What's wrong?" asked Natsu.

"GAH! I just realized something! We have to go ALL the way back from where we started!" shouted Konan irritated. "And I don't wanna!"

Natsu laughed softly. "It's alright, Konan! If we complete a request or cleared a dungeon, we automately get transported back to the guild using our badges! All we have to do is click the middle of our badges and we gets teleported immediantly!"

"Really? Sweet! Let's do this!" So, Team Pokepals pressed the middle of their badges and got teleported by a strange ray of light.

* * *

_At the guild... _

"Thank you so much!" thanked Spoint bowing her head several times and bouncing around. "I missed my precious pearl so much! Thank you very much!"

"It's nothing, really! We were just trying to help!" said Natsu sheeplishly rubbing the back of his head, embarrassed.

"We're just glad to see you happy," said Mia.

"Yeah! This was such an easy request! Especially on our first day!" cheered Konan.

"You three have my sincere thanks!" Spoink handed Team Pokepals a Protein, a Calcium, an Iron, and...2,000 POKE GALD!

"Whoa! 2,000 POKE GLAD?! That's amazing!" gasped Natsu.

"Can we really accept this much?" asked Mia shocked as well.

"Of course! That's nothing compared to my pearl's value!" ensured Spoink. "Farewell!~"

As soon as Spoint bounced out of the guild, Konan turned to Mia and Natsu with dollar signed eyes and exclaimed, "We're rich, guys! We got rich, just like that! And on our first day too! Can this day get any better or what?!"

"Well done, you three!" praised Chatot. "Now, please hand over that money please!~"

"What?!" all three shouted in shock as Chatot swiped the bag of 2,000 Poke Gald from Konan's hands.

"Most of the money from jobs goes to the Guildmaster, you see!" explained Chatot. "So, your team's share of the money comes this much!~" Chatot handed Konan back the almost empty bag of Poke Gald. Konan looked inside and saw only 200 Poke Gald inside.

"What!" shouted Konan and Mia irritated.

"Only one tenth of the money?! That's not fair!" complained Natsu.

"Well, that's part of the guild's rules," said Chatot. "You're going to have to accept it, like it or not!~"

_'...We could have at least gotten a bit more,' _thought Natsu.

_'This isn't fair! We all worked hard on our first day, and we only get 200 Poke Gald?! Not fair at all!' _thought Mia.

_'You know what, I take back what I said about this being a great guild! This is the worst day ever!' _thought Konan.

* * *

_Later... _

**RING! RING! **"Everyone! Dinner's ready!" called Chimecho, the Guild's official cook. Every day, she prepares dinner for every guild member in the guild. It's a miracle that she hasn't gotten sick or broke down in exhaustion once.

"Dinner? We get dinner? Sweet!" said Konan running towards the Mess Hall with a mob of Pokemon also running towards the Mess Hall, leaving only Natsu and Mia standing.

"...Wow. For not only Konan, everyone else has a huge appetite," commented Natsu.

"Yeah," agreed Mia.

"Hey, what are you two still doing here? Dinner's ready!" called Chimecho.

"Huh? Oh, right! Let's go, Mia!"

"R-right!" In the Mess Hall, everyone was chowing down their dinner, either fast, or slowly. Actually, Natsu and Mia seems to be the only ones savoring their dinner because they didn't want to end up having stomach aches. For everyone else, you'd think that there might be a fast-eating contest.

After dinner, everyone started heading towards their dorm rooms. "Man! That was one of the best meals I ever had!" one of the guild members commented.

"Yeah, and I'm getting sleepy..."

"Goodnight guys..."

"Night..."

* * *

_Later that night... _

"Hey guys?" asked Natsu. "I thought that we might mess up in ou first day, but it seemed fine."

"Yeah, unless you count Chatot taking most of our money and giving us 200 Poke Gald in return," mumbled Konan.

"But we received more money than that, you know," reminded Mia. "Remember, we got more money in our previous dungeon, so adding 200 Poke Gald isn't that bad."

"Even so, we got thanked by Spoink! It sure is nice, helping Pokemon out and then seeing their smiles in the end makes me so happy!" revealed Natsu. "What about you guys?"

"I have to agree with you on this one, Natsu," agreed Mia. "I like seeing Pokemon smile too."

"Well, it would be nice to get a bigger reward," started Konan. "But yeah, I like seeing Pokemon smile. But I wonder what'll happen tommorow."

"I don't know, but I hope it's something more exciting!" said Natsu. Then, he yawned. "Goodnight, Konan and Mia.

"Goodnight," both of them said before going to sleep.

* * *

**Hope: Whew! Finally done with this chapter! Unfortunely, since school is up and all, it'll take me a while to update, so sorry!**

**Konan: Ah man! It'll take a while?! But I can't wait!**

**Hope: Just be glad that I included some action with you and your friends. If not for that, then what's the use of this fic? Anyways, please review and give me any good ideas to put in this story! Also, I would appreciate it if you informed others about this story! Ok, bye and see you soon!**


	4. The Scream!

**Hope: Hey guys! Sorry for the late update You know, with all the school stuff I got and all the updating! But now, I'm back in action!**

**Konan: Took ya long enough!**

**Hope: Well, I'm back, aren't I? If I wasn't, nobody would know what happened with you guys!**

**Natsu: She has a point, Konan.**

**Konan: Who's side are you on?!**

**Mia: Hey! Don't yell at Natsu like that, stupid birdbrain!**

**Konan: Hey! Don't call me stupid birdbrain, stupid mouse!**

**Mia: WHAT?!**

**Hope: Natsu, please do the disclaimer!**

**Natsu: Oh! R-right! Mage of Hope does not own Pokemon series, only the Pokemon Company does! H-hey! You guys! Please don't throw stuff in here! Ack! **

* * *

"UP AND AT 'EM! IT'S MORNING!" screamed Loudred.

"Ugh...five more minutes..." groaned Konan, saying exactly what he said yesterday morning, except this time, he didn't say the word, 'mom.'

"AGAIN?! Look, I'm not going to get in trouble, just because you three wouldn't wake up and get late! Now hurry up! Before I DIE from Guildmaster's wrath!"

"Ugh...shut up and die then..." said Mia, not realizing what she just said.

"*yawn* Exactly what she says..." yawned Konan.

This caused a lot of angry anime veins to appear at Loudred's head, and his eyes to twitch. No one has ever made him this angry before, and so fast too. Well, there goes breaking the new record of trying to get Loudred mad really fast. Very swiftly, despite his appearance, he picked both Konan and Mia up by one foot each, leaving them to dangle in the air.

When Konan and Mia fully woke up, due to the blood rushing to their heads, they started screaming and shouting and demanding that Loudred let them go. Loudred turned to the still sleeping Natsu and yelled, "WAKE UP!"

"Eeek!" squealed Natsu getting up quickly and running to the briefing room.

"Great! You scared Natsu! Way to go!" shouted Mia sarcastically while trying to break free of Loudred's grip.

"It was your guys fault for not waking up too sooner! Now, I'm going to start running, so don't blame me if you start puking! On second though, don't puke, or else I'll wake you with my most powerful voice ever!"

"YOUR VOICE IS ALREADY POWERFUL ENOUGH!" screamed Konan and Mia as Loudred was running to the briefing room, making the two dangeled figures wanting to puke several times, but they held their breath. When they got to the briefing room, nobody dared ask what happened, due to the noises and screams they heard in the dormitory, and the fact that Wigglytuff was coming out right now.

"...AND THREE! SMILES GO FOR MILES!" yelled everyone, Natsu, Konan, and Mia not messing up their lines.

"Ok, Pokemon! Time to go to work!~" sang Chatot.

"HOORAY!"

After everyone but Chatot and Team Pokepals left, Chatot turned to the team and said, "Oh, you three! Come with me."

The three turned to each other, nodded, and followed Chatot into the second floor. Soon, he lead them to the board on the right this time, confusing the team.

"Huh? Last time we did a job, it was on the left side," said Konan. "Now we're doing a job on the right? What is the difference?"

"Correct!~" said Chatot, speaking in a french accent for a moment. "Today, we'll have you do a job listed on this side! Now, take a closer look!"

Team Pokepals got closer to the board, and saw lots of Pokemon's faces on several papers. "Hey! There are posters that show a variety of Pokemon! And they all look so cool! Are these famous explorers?!"

"These Pokemon are outlaws," replied Chatot. "They're wanted for committing crimes."

"Outlaws?!" shouted all three members.

"Correct. So, they have bounties on their heads. Also, there's a cash reward at the end if you managed to capture one. There's so many aggresive Pokemon these days, that it's hard to find them. Also, there's a rumor about a ghost type Pokemon named Haunted who goes by and if you sneak at night, he'll surely do THINGS to you..."

"Ahhhhh! I'm scared, but I really want to know what things he does!" squealed Natsu, half scared and half excited.

"Hey! Chatot!" shotued Mia, standing in front of Natsu with her arms wide open. "Even if you're the Guildmaster's right-handed man, I can't allow you to tell Natsu those kinds of things to him! He'll be scarred for life! He needs to know when he's older!"

"Huh? How old is he, Mia?" asked Chatot.

"14!"

"...You're right. He's too young."

"Eh?! But I wanna know what things Chatot was talking about!" whined Natsu like a little boy wanting for ice cream.

"Hey, these Pokemon up on the posters...aren't we supposed to kill them? But then, the guild members would be labeled as bounty hunters who kill, right?" questioned Konan looking at the posters.

Everyone gawked at Konan's question in shock. Chatot got mad and squwaked, "NO! NO! NO! Of course you don't, numbskull! Whatever gave you the idea that you had to kill them?!"

"Well, normally-" Then, Konan was interrupted by both Mia and Natsu pulling him back into a corner and talking to him privately.

"Konan! I'm not sure what happened you before you lost your memory, but I'll only say this once," hissed Mia. "WE. DO. NOT. KILL. CRIMINALS!"

"She's right, you know," supported Natsu.

"Oh! Then, what do you do?" asked Konan.

Natsu and Mia's jaws fell to the ground. Natsu recovered first and said, "Well, you just capture them of course! That's all! But if they put up resistence, you have to fight!"

"Oh...now I get it!" Konan turned to Chatot and sheeplishly scratched the back of his head. "Ah, sorry Chatot! I misunderstood there for a second! Now I understand everything!"

"...Anyways, the bad Pokemon out there come in all shades of badness!" Chatot continued, trying to forget everything that happened in the last minute. "Some Pokemon are very very wicked! I'm sure we can avoid giving you three a superbad Pokemon! So, look at these posters, and select what weak Pokemon you want to capture! And no, not killing."

"Um..." Natsu raised his hand shyly. "You say they're weak, but they're still bad Pokemon, aren't they? I'm terrified of dangerous Pokemon!"

"It's all part of your training! You'll surpass your fears!" ensured Chatot. "However, I suppose you do need to be prepared when confronting a tough opponent, so...I'll have someone give you a tour of the facility." Chatot called out, "Bidoof! Hey, Bidoof!"

"Yup, yup! Coming!" called back a voice. The Pokemon hurried up the ladder and into the second floor. "Huff...huff...you called?"

"These are the new recruits that joined us," explained Chatot. "Take them and show them around town."

"Yes, sirree! By golly, I will! Yup, yup!"

Chatot turned back to Team Pokepals and introduced, "This is Bidoof. He's one of your fellow apprentices. I want you three to pay attention to Bidoof and follow his orders. Off you go!~"

After Chatot left, Bidoof squealed, "By golly, I'm so happy!"

"Why?" asked Mia.

"Because I'm so glad to have members close to my rank! I might just burst with happiness right now!"

"Wait, the same rank?" Konan turned to his Explorer Badge, which was the Normal Rank. "You're the same rank as we are? But doesn't that make you a rookie also?"

"Yup! Before you all signed up, I was the most recent rookie. *sniffle*"

"Oh, no! Don't start crying now!" complained Konan.

"Konan! That's horrible!" scolded Mia.

"No, no. He's right," sniffled Bidoof, wiping away his tears. "Well, I better show ya'll around. Follow me." After arriving downstairs, Bidoof continued, "Ok! First things first!" He pointed to Croagunk with his...weird shop...with his cauldron. "Here, we have Croagunk, but...I have no idea what that Pokemon's been up to. He always seemed to be fiddling with that huge cauldron over there. It's a mystery to everyone! Next!" Bidoof pointed to the route to the Mess Hall. "Over that way is the Mess Hall." Bidoof turned to the right and said, "And over there are the crew rooms." Next, he pointed to a room with huge doors. "And this here leads to Guildmaster's Chambers. Next, I'll guide you around town."

While walking towards town, Konan asked, "Hey, why didn't you guys show me around the town yesterday?"

Natsu realized that was true and answered, "Um...I guess we were in a hurry. I mean, Chatot did shove us out of the guild the second we accepted the request."

"Yeah, but if we had time, we should have gone shopping for items! We almost fainted in the dungeon!" agreed Mia.

"Well, that is Chatot, always rushing things," laughed Bidoof. Finally, when they arrived in town, Bidoof continued his explanation, "Okay! This is the main part of the town for local Pokemon. This town is called Treasure Town!"

"Huh, so this is Treasure Town!" exclaimed Konan impressed.

"Ooh! I can tell you guys a lot of things in Treasure Town!" offered Natsu. He first points to a shop that looks like a Duskull, with a Duskull at the counter. "First, that's Duskull Bank. We can save our money there."

"Hmm, scary, but cool at the same time, "complimented Konan.

Natsu pointed to a shop that looks similiar to an Electivire, but the shop owner wasn't at the counter. "Over there is the Electivire Link Shop. You can link moves together."

"Wait, what do you mean link moves together?" asked Konan.

"Well, for example, say that you had two moves, Tackle and Flame Wheel. You want to link them together, and you did. After you used the Tackle move, Flame Wheel comes next automatically without your command."

"Oh! So basically, there's combination attacks?"

"Yup! And it can be more than two! But four moves are the limit. Moving on!" Natsu pointed to a shop that looked like a Kecleon, and the shop owners were two Kecleons, one green and the other purple. "There's the Kecleon Market! You can buy and sell items there!" Next, he pointed to a store looking like a Kangaskhan. "That's the Kangaskhan Storage! Anything stored there will never be lost! And...that should do it!"

"Wow! What an awesome explanation you did, Natsu!" complimented Mia happily.

"Yup! You sure know a lot, sirreee! That's good to know!" agreed Bidoof. "All right then. I think that's it for this tour. Come find me in the second floor of the guild when you're all done. I'll give you guys a hand in finding the perfect outlaw to catch!"

"Thank you, Bidoof! You're really nice!" thanked Natsu politely.

Bidoof blushed from the compliment. "Golly, you're embarrassing me! Anyways, I'll be waiting at the guild. See you!"

After Bidoof left, Konan said, "Alright! Let's go to the Link Shop first!"

"Why the Link Shop?" asked Mia. "I say, we get the itme sfirst. After all, you have to always be prepared for dungeons, and in this case, we really do."

"Yeah, but you alwaysw have to be prepared to fight! Besides, the Pokemon in the dungeon always drop stuff after we defeat them, so we'll collect them! Also, there are tons of items in the dungeon, and you can get them for free! First come, first served!" argued back Konan.

"Mia, I think Konan has a good point," agreed Natsu.

"W-huh?! Mia was shocked at Natsu's decision.

"Sure buying items is important, but we need to get stronger too. We can't always rely on items. Plus, we'll only spent a little bit of Poke Gald on one person, okay?"

"Hmm...okay then."

"Alright! Let's go to the Link Shop then!" said Konan cheerfully. "Hopefully, this Electivire guy's prices won't be so high.

However, Team Pokepals did not expect Electivire's shop to be close and to also find a note in the counter saying, **"On Vacation. Back in a few weeks."**

"Damn it!" shouted Konan annoyed.

"See? Told you it was a waste of time. Let's just go," said Mia. She and Natsu went ahead first.

"Yeah, yeah," mumbled Konan following them. Then, he noticed a shop he never saw before and got closer to it. The shop had a Marowak face in the front, while the rest...was just bones and bricks covering up the whole place.

"So, you like that place?" asked a voice from behind Konan.

"HOLY-!" Konan almost screamed, turning around. He saw a Sunflora and Corphish standing in front of him. "Oh, who are you?"

"I'm Sunflora, an apprentice of the guild!~" sang Sunflora happily.

"Hey, hey, hey! And I'm Corphish, another apprentice as well! You're the new rookie, right?" introduced Corphish.

"Yeah! And I also happen to be the proud leader of Team Pokepals!...And don't ask about the team name. Natsu did it."

"Hey, hey, hey! If you don't know what's going on or whatever, you can come ask us, you know?"

"Yeah, I'll remember that. Say, I've got a question. What's that weird shop there?" asked Konan pointing to the shop he encountered eariler.

"Oh, that? That's the Marowak Dojo," answered Sunflora now using a bored tone.

"Really?! A dojo?! Sweet!"

"But, it's not really popular. Heck, it doesn't even have customers! I don't get how Marowak has the Poke Gald to still keep it up!"

"Who cares! It's still a dojo! Which means fighting! And fightning makes you stronger to deaft any kind of enemy you want!"

"Konan, where are you?" called Mia's voice. "Man, you can't stand still for two seconds, can you?" Mia and Natsu started walking towards Konan.

"Sorry, guys! But listen, I found this really cool dojo! Now, we can train and get stronger!" said Konan, getting excited. "Oh, and this is Sunflora, and this is Corphish. Sunflora, Corphish, meet Mia and Natsu. Mia's the stupid mouse and Natsu's the Chimchar."

"Excuse me?! Who are you calling a stupid mouse, stupid birdbrain!"

"Hey, don't call me that stupid mouse!"

"Then don't call me that, stupid birdbrain!"

"Um...guys?" questioned Natsu. "Shouldn't we get going?"

"Oh...Natsu's right! We wasted enough time!" agreed Mia. "Let's just hurry up and get out stuff and-"

"Wait! What about the dojo?!"

"What-oh, that dojo. That dojo...isn't really popular, birdbrain. In fact, it's closed."

"What?!" Konan ran to the dojo entrance and saw a sign at the front door that said, "**Marowak Dojo has collasped. But it was rise from the rubble again! Yes! The Dojo will be ressurected to its former glory! -Marowak Dojo's sensei-" **

"What is with closed shops today?!" shouted Konan irritated, even kicking the dojo doors as hard as he could, only to result as a sore foot.

"Anyways, we should get going, right Natsu?" asked Mia, helping Konan out.

"R-right. Nice seeing you, Sunflora and Corphish," said Natsu.

"Hey, hey...is your friend going to be okay?"

"Well, Konan's tough, so he'll probably pull through..."

After finally arriving at the Kecleon Shop, the green Kecleon said, "Welcome to the Kecleon Shop! We've never seen you three before! Is this your first time?"

"Yes!" said Natsu.

"Ah! New customers! How exciting, right big brother?" asked Kecleon.

"Yes, little brother!" said the purple Kecleon.

"Hey, what are your names, anyways?" asked Konan.

"Konan, that's rude!" scolded Mia.

"What? I just wanted to know because we can't keep calling them 'Mr. Kecleon,' or 'the Kecleon twins.'"

"It's fine," said the purple Kecleon. "Technically, we've been trying to find good names for ourselves, but we can't come up with a good one!"

"Hmm...oh! How about you-" Natsu points to the green Kecleon. "-Become Gemi and you-" Points to the pruple Kecleon. "-can be Mini!"

"Huh?" everyone except Natsu wondered.

"Well, I heard that there was Signs of the Zodiac, and Gemini happened to be one of them. Gemini represents twins, and you two are twins, so I thought it would be good for you," explained Natsu. "O-oh course you don't have to..."

The green Kecleon and the purple Kecleon look at each other and grinned widely. "That's...PERFECT!" both brothers said in unison. "It's way perfect for us! Thank you, friend! As a reward, we'll let you pick one item for free!"

Mia clapped her hands. "Yeah! You rock, Natsu!"

_'She totally likes him,' _thought Konan. He slapped Natsu lightly on the back and said, "Alright, Natsu! Your smartness just gained us a free item! Now, let's go pick one!"

"Hold on! Natsu deserves the reward more than us!" argued Mia. She turned to Natsu and kindly spoke, "Natsu, go ahead and pick anything you want."

Natsu shook his head. "No, we should all agree on something."

"How about this?" Gemi, the green Kecleon asked. He picked up a small black box and placed it on the counter.

"Ooh! Is this what I think it is?! A Link Box?!" exclaimed Natsu.

"A Link Box?!...I have no idea what it is," admitted Konan.

Natsu turned to Konan and excitedly explained, "A Link Box is an item that allows more than one move to be linked with one another!"

"So, in other words, they're like with the Link Shop?!" said Konan, catching on.

"Yes! Thank you so much, Gemi and Mini!"

"It's our pleasure!" said both twins in unison. "Anything else you want to buy? And this time, you have to pay!"

"Alright, hold on," said Konan. He turned to his friends and asked, "How much money do we have anyways?"

"Hmm...let's see..." Natsu put the Link Box in his Treasure Bag and pulled out the small sack of money, which had a large number 260 on it. "Oh! 260 Gald!"

"...How can you tell without opening it?" asked Konan dumbfounded.

"Watch. Um...we'll take an Apple, a Blinker Seed, a Quick Seed, a Sleep Seed, a Warp Seed...two Oran Berries,,,and I think that's it."

"Ok! That'll be...260 Poke Gald," answered Gemi.

After Natsu handed him the bag, the number 260 turned to 0 the moment Gemi got all the Poke Gald out. Konan was amazed. "Whoa! That's...so awesome! Teach me how to do that magic trick!"

"It's no magic trick, Konan," said Mia. "That Bag is a special kind of bag called, 'Limit Sack.' It means the amount of things you put in there. For instant, say that you've got three Apples, and you put them in the bag. The number of things in the bag will be shown in the huge number outside of the bag, which will show the number 3. If the bag's empty, it'll show the number 0. They're really cheap."

"So cool! ...Wait, another question," spoke up Konan. "Yesterday, Natsu said that the amount of money in a Poke Gald depends on its price, so couldn't some other Pokemon just rewrite a new number on the Gald or something?"

"That's a good question, Konan," said Natsu. "Lots of Pokemon tried that in the past, and nobody could. You know why? Because every time they tried to write a new number on the Poke Gald, the number they wrote down magically disappears and all that's left is the price of the Poke Gald. Not even a Smeargle could do it. Even if someone really had succeeded in making fake Poke Gald, there's some system in every shop that can tell if the Poke Gald are fake or not. So, the percent of selling fake Poke Gald is 0%."

"Wow...seriously?" asked Konan stunned.

"Guys? Shouldn't we get going?" wondered Mia a bit impatiently.

"Oh! Right!" agreed Konan. He turned to the twin Kecleons and said, 'Bye Gemi and Mini!"

"Farewell!"

"Misters Kecleon!" called two voices at the same time. Everyone turned and saw a Marill and Azurill coming towards the counter.

Gemi exclaimed, "Ah! Little Marill and Azurill!Welcome, my young friends!"

"Hello! May we please buy an Apple?" asked Azurill.

"Why, oh course!" said Gemi happily.

While the Marill and Azurill were buying the Apple, Konan noticed that Mia had a smile on her face. Konan asked, "Hey, why are you so happy all of a sudden?"

"Huh?" Mia's face was flustered, and she was REALLY glad she had red cheeks. "Well, I like cute things, that's all! Is that so wrong?"

"Cute things? Yeah, I guess that Marill and his little sister is kinda cute." (Azurill is actually a boy, but Konan doesn't know that due to Azurill's high-pitched voice)

"Thank you, Misters Kecleon!" thanked Marill.

"No, thank you, young friends! Take care!"

After the two youngsters left, Konan asked, "Who are those two?"

Gemi answered, "Those delightful children's mother has gotten sick, so the youngsters do all of the shopping for her. Isn't that sweet?~"

Before anyone could answer, a voice called back, "Misters Kecleon!" The Marill and Azurill came rushing back.

"Oh? What's the hurry?" asked Gemi.

"There was an extra Apple!" told Azurill.

"We didn't pay this much," said Marill.

"Ah, yes that is a gift from my brother and me. Please do share it!"

_'What?! They get FREE FOOD?! Then again, we did get that sweet Link Box, so that should be alright,' _thought Konan.

"Thank you, Mr. Kecleons!" thanked both Marill and Azurill. As both of them were leaving, Azurill tripped and dropped his Apple. Konan noticed and picked it up and started walking towards Azurill to return it.

Azurill thanked, 'We're sorry to bother you."

After Konan returned the Apple, he started feeling dizzy and clutched his head. He thought, _'W-what the...I'm...getting all dizzy...' _

* * *

**"H-Help me!" **

* * *

_'Whoa! What was that?!' _thought Konan, jerking his head upwards in shock. _'I'm sure I heard someone cry for help! And that sounded an awful lot like Azurill's...' _

Confused, Azurill decided to leave the dazed Konan alone and return to his brother. "Ha ha, those guys are cute," laughed Natsu.

"Yup!~" agreed Mia childishly. Then, both of them noticed Konan's dazed expression and got worried. "Hey, you okay Konan?"

"Huh?" Konan snapped out of his thoughts and turned to both Mia and Natsu. "Did you guys hear a shout for help?"

"A...shout for help? Nope," said Natsu.

"I didn't hear anything either," said Mia. She turned to the Kecleon brothers and asked, "Ddi you guys hear anything?"

"Nope, nothing out of the ordinary," said Mini, the purple Kecleon.

"See? You probably imagined it," ensured Natsu, patting Konan on the shoulder.

_'No, I'm POSTIVE I heard that scream. And there was no doubt Azurill's scream!' _thought Konan.

"Hey, are you daydreaming?" asked Mia, shaking the stunned Konan.

"W-what?"

"Let's move it! We've got to get back to the guild, remember?"

"Oh...right."

While heading back to the guild, Team Pokepals saw Azurill and Marilla talking to a Drowzee. "Yaayy!" squealed Azurill.

"Thank you!" thanked Marill.

"No, no, it's nothing," said Drowzee.

"Hey, what's going on?" asked Konan, curious.

"Oh! Some time ago, we lost an item that's pretty important to us. We've been looking all over, but we still haven't found it," explained Marill. "Then Mr. Drowzee came by and says he may have found it somewhere! He even offered to help look for it! We're so grateful!"

"Yes! Thank you Mr. Drowzee!" chirped Azurill cheerfully.

"Oh please," said Drowzee kindly. "I'd have a cold heart to ignore children in need! Let us be on our way!"

"Yup!" both Azurill and Marill agreed.

As the trio were leaving, Drowzee bumped into Konan by accident and apologized, "Oops! Sorry, excuse me."

All of a sudden, Konan started feeling dizzy once again. _'U-ugh...what is this...?' _thought Konan clutching his head in pain.

"That Drowzee person sure is a nice Pokemon, isn't he?" wondered Natsu outloud.

"Yeah! I totally agree!' nodded Mia. "It's hard to find good Pokemon these days!"

Konan started getting more dizzier. _'It's going...to happen again...my head...this stupid dizzy spell...'_

* * *

_The scene in Konan's image shows Drowzee and Azurill alone. Drowzee spoke in a threatning tone, "**If you keep making things difficult, it'll mean trouble for you!" **_

_**"H-Help me!" **cried Azurill._

* * *

As soon as the image faded away, Konan opened his eyes in shock. _'Whoa! What the hell was that?!' _

"It would be nice if those fellows found their item soon," said Natsu. Then, both he and Mia noticed Konan's pale face and grew worried.

"Hey, you're looking grim. What's wrong?" asked Mia.

After Konan explained everything in a shaky tone, both Natsu and Mia were shocked as he were. "What?! You grew dizzy?! And then you saw Azurill get threatened by Drowzee?!" exclaimed Natsu. "Not only thsat, you want to rescue Azurill right now?!"

"It's an emergency!" shouted Konan desperately, still shocked.

"Well...what you describe is an emergency," said Mia also still shock.

"Also, it's not like we don't trust you, Konan," said Natsu, catching on what Mia was going to say. "But...we can't...believe this! After all, Drowzee does seem like a nice Pokemon, right?"

"Well...yeah," Konan had to agree on that. "And those three were having a good time together."

"See? You're probably just tired or something. Maybe you just imagined it," ensured Mia.

"Y-yeah! You're probably right!" said Konan, sheeplishly rubbing the back of his head. He thought, _'But was I really imagining things? It seemed so real! Come to think of it, Drowzee doesn't seem like a bad Pokemon. Huh, must be my imagination.' _

"Anyways, we're only apprentices, so we can't just do as we please," said Natsu. "I'm sure they'll be fine. Let's just concentrate on our training and go back to the guild."

Back at the guild, in the second floor, Team Pokepals finally arrived and met up with Bidoof. "Hey, Bidoof! We're all set!" said Konan, forgetting about about his images and dizzy spells.

"Alright, sire! Let's go find you a outlaw to capture!" encouraged Bidoof. He and Team Pokepals looked at the board for at least one weak outlaw to catch. "Let's see...this one? No...this? Too dangerous! How-"

**BEEP! BEEP! BEEP! **There was a huge alarm that went off, making everyone but Bidoof freak out. Natsu and Konan were the only ones screaming and running around while frailing their arms around, while Mia just jumped and covered her ears.

"AH! AH! IT'S THE END OF THE WORLD! HELP US!" screamed the two idiotic boys.

"Stand clear! Updating listings! Repeat, stand clear! Updating listings!" called a mysterious voice.

"AAAHHHHH! A VOICE FROM NOWHERE! IT REALLY IS THE END OF THE WORLD!"

All of a sudden, the whole guild started rumbling, like an earthquake had started, and started getting worse, making Natsu and Konan scream more.

"WHAT'S HAPPENING?!" screamed Natsu.

"I DON'T KNOW!" screamed back Konan.

"KONAN, I WANT TO SAY TWO THINGS BEFORE WE DIE!"

"WHAT?!"

"I THINK YOU'RE AN AMAZING FRIEND, AND...**I ATE THAT DELICIOUS AND SWEET PEACHA BERRY THAT YOU WANTED LAST NIGHT!" **

"WHAT?!"

"IT WAS SITTING, RIGHT THERE, IN YOUR PLATE! AND WHILE YOU WERE DISTRACTED, I TRIED TO FIGHT THE URGE TO EAT IT, BUT I COULDN'T! I'M SORRY!"

"...I'M GONNA KILL YOU, NATSU!"

"What's going on, Bidoof?!" yelled Mia, ignoring Konan's and Natsu's screams. "And why are you so calm?!"

"Oh, the data's getting updated," spoke Bidoof calmly like it was normal.

All of a suden, the Outlaw Notice Board panel flipped over, and at the same time, stopped the rumbling and got everyone's attention, even Konan and Natsu, who were fighting each other even though it was Konan doing the fighting, and Natsu defending himself.

"Whoa!" said Konan, getting off the ground and looking at the flipped board. "D-did you guys just see that?! That panel just flipped over!"

Bidoof explained, "The Outlaw Notice Board and the Job Bulletin Board are set up on revolving panels. While the panel's flipped over, a Pokemon named Dugtrio swaps out the old jobs with new ones."

"Dugtrio?" wondered all three members of Team Pokepals.

"Dugtrio's duty is updating data. He tunnels his way to the guild, flips the panel, and updates the data. This duty isn't noticed much, but it's important, yup yup!"

"Update completed! Stand clear!" shouted Dugtrio's voice. "Repeat, updated completed! Stand clear!"

"Oh, and it looks like he's done already," said Bidoof amused. After the panel flipped over, there were new posters of Pokemon on them. "Alright, sirree! The data has been updated, so let's pick one!"

All of a sudden, Natsu staretd trembling, and he stumbled back a little in shock and horror. Everyone turned to him, confused and worried. "Huh? What's wrong with you? It's not cold in here," spoke Bidoof, checking to see if the room was cold.

Mia asked, concerned, "Natsu, are you alright?"

"Guys, l-l-look at this!" sputtered Natsu, pointing a finger at the Outlaw Notice Board. Mia and Konan looked at the board, confused and wondering what Natsu was staring at. "At the top of the left!"

Konan and Mia did what he instructed and couldn't believe their eyes. The poster...happen to have a picture of Drowzee on it.

"Oh, man! It's Drowzee!" shouted Konan, freaking out.

"Natsu, Konan! Let's go! We still might have time to save Azurill and Marill! Let's go!" commanded Mia, her tone also frantic. Without hesitation, Team Pokepals left to save the two, leaving Bidoof confused.

Outside the guild, the team spotted Marill and ran up to him. "Yo, Marill! What's wrong?!" shouted Konan frantically. "Where's Azurill and Drowzee!"

"Yes, about them," started Marill. "After we left to go search for our lost item, I wounded up alone when Mr. Drowzee went somewhere with Azurill! I tried looking for them but I can't find them!"

"Do you remember which way they went?" asked Natsu.

"Yes! I remember them going this way!" shouted Marill. "Follow me!"

Arriving at the entrance of mountains, Konan wheezed, "A-are you...sure this is the place?"

"Yes! Last time, I saw them going this way!"

"Oh, Konan! When you saw Drowzee and Azurill, it was in a mountainous place, right?" asked Natsu.

"Yeah, this looks like the place," said Konan, looking up and down at the mountains.

"Of course they have to be here!" shouted Mia, trying to feel confident. "We have to go check it out!"

"Right!" agreed the two boys from Mia's teams.

"Marill, how about you go inform the Police, or some agency that catches criminals?" requested Konan.

"You mean the Pokemon Police? Ok! Be safe!" called Marill as he was running.

* * *

_Mt. Bristle B1F _

"By the way," started Natsu as he and his team were wandering in the dungeon. "Since we left the guild without explaining what's going on, wouldn't the guild send members to go find us?"

Konan and Mia both stopped, thinking about what Natsu said. "...You're right! And then we can all take down Drowzee together!" shouted Konan triumphly thumping his hand into his palm.

"...That's not what I meant. I mean, if they do send members and try to find us, wouldn't they just try to use force to bring us back? I mean, we DID kinda DISOBEYED the rules."

"Disobey how exactly, Natsu?" asked Konan.

"Like, we saw Drowzee's wanted poster back at the guild, right? So, we didn't select that job, instead, we came rushing out of there to stop Drowzee. Therefore, we broke the rules! And that would be punishment! And Chatot warned us not to get in trouble, or we'd feel Wigglytuff's wrath! And do you know how many scary rumors I heard about him?! Eeek!"

"...Hey guys! I found the stairs!" shouted Konan totally trying to change the subject and climbing down the stairs.

"Hey! Did you even listen to a word Natsu said?!" shouted Mia angrily. She turned to Natsu and ensured him, "Don't worry, Natsu! If the worse happens, I'll come and protect you!"

"B-but I-"

"Don't worry! For now, we have to catch up to Konan, then we go rescue Azurill, okay?"

"You're right. Let's go."

* * *

_Mt. Bristle B2F _

"Hey, do you know the exact location of Drowzee and Azurill?" asked Natsu.

"Well-"

"String Shot!" All of a sudden, white string fired from out of nowhere and tied up Konan.

"Ahhh!" he screamed after being tied up. "W-what is this?!"

"Get out of our territory!" shouted a Spinarak.

"Hey, you! Yeah you!" shouted Konan, jumping up and down while struggling to break free. "Attacking someone from behind isn't fair!"

"Try taking your own advice!" shouted Mia irritated, remembering about the Geo Pebble incident from their last mission.

"Hey! If I can't use my arms...then, BUBBLE-"

"String Shot!" Once more, the Spinarak muzzled Konan's beak, preventing him from using his Bubblebeam attack.

"MMPH! MMPH!" screamed Konan furiously as he started squirming and jerking around.

"...Well, that was close," said Mia. She turned back to the enemy and shouted, "Thundershock!" Mia's body glows yellow, and she releashes a lightning bolt from her body and strikes the Spinarak, defeating it quickly.

"MMPH! MMPH!"

"Oh, right. Hmm...maybe I'll let you be like this...as part of revenge for yesterday," teased Mia mischeviously.

"MMPH! MMPH! MMPH! (Translation: YOU ARE SO DEAD WHEN I GET FREE!)"

"Um...Mia? Maybe we should untie him right now," suggested Natsu.

"Why?"

"Because, what if a large Monster House appeared? Then we'd have no chance with two against how many there are!"

"Hmm...you've got a point there," agreed Mia. Then, she and Natsu noticed a Machop running their way, prepared to attack.

"AHHHHHH! GET OFF MY TERRITORY!" the Machop shouted.

"H-hurry!" squeaked Natsu. This gave Mia another sneaky idea.

"Alright then," said Mia, getting out a sharp Iron Thorn from her bag and cutting the cocoon Konan was trapped in.

"Finally!" said Konan, glaring at the michevious looking Mia. "You are a-"

"Low Kick!" shouted Machop, his leg ready to strike. His target was going to be Mia first. Right at that moment, Mia pulled Konan in front of her and held on tightly to his shoulder.

**WHAM! **Everyone but the amused Mia were shocked of what happened next. Machop's leg connected...with Konan. But...

Machop's leg was in the spot between Konan's legs. A direct and critical hit.

"OOOWWWW! CRITICAL HIT TO THE NABS!" screamed Konan painfully as he began jumping up and down while protecting his...crotch. Mia was on the ground, laughing and clutching her sides.

Both Natsu and the Machop looked at each other, then at Konan, then back to each other. Both had completely forgotten what they were doing and can only gawk in shock. Natsu was the first to regain his senses and yelled, "Ember!" Bolts of fire fired at the Machop from Chimchar's mouth, inflicting damage to Machop and forcing him to run away.

"AHHHH! I WILL HAVE MY REVENGE! THIS MEANS WAR!"

* * *

_Mt. Bristle B3F _

"Hey! I found the stairs to the next floor!" called Natsu happily.

Konan's stomach growled loudly. "Ah man! I'm so starved! I can't wait until we get back to the guild for some dinner! But I'm so hungry!"

"Well, maybe you can wait a bit long-"

"Whoa!" said Mia picking up a Big Apple. "These Apples are so hard to find these days! Here, Natsu! You can-"

**CRUNCH! **Konan took a HUGE bite out of the big Apple, shocking his other two members. Konan's eyes widen. "WHOA! This Apple is delicious!"

"Konan! I was going to give that to Natsu!" shouted Mia angrily.

"Why? You found it fair and square, so you should have kept it and put it in your bag before I gobbled it. Or is it because you wanted to impress your boyfriend?"

"I told you! Natsu isn't my boyfriend! I only view him as a good and kind friend! And I wanted to show my kindness to him by giving him the Big Apple! But then you had to go and eat it! Agh! You are such a pig, Konan! Annoying little devil!"

"Says the person who didn't want to untie me AND used me as a shield against that Machop! That was a critical hit to the nabs, you know!"

"Um...guys?" asked Natsu timidly raising a hand.

"What?!" shouted Konan.

Mia hit him lightly in the head and turned to Natsu with a sweet look on her face. "Yes, Natsu?"

"I appreciate your concern over me, Mia. I really do, but I'm not hungry. Besides, you were the one who found the Big Apple in the first place, so you should have kept it."

"Ha! Just like I said, stupid mouse!"

"However Konan, even though you're trying to be a good leader, maybe you should consider your surroundings and all. After all, we're going to face powerful opponents soon, so it should be fair that we have a leader who makes the right choices. A-and I don't mean that you're a bad leader or anything-"

Suddenly, Natsu felt a soft hand on his head and looked up. Konan was friendly grinning, while patting his friend's head. "Don't worry, Natsu. But seriously, you have to change so that you can stand up to others. Like you said, I'm trying to become a good leader, but I'll do need you and Mia's help. So we can solve your Relic Fragment, get my memories back, and get Mia a boyfriend."

"HEY! I just told you that I don't like Natsu like that!"

Natsu smiled back. He was glad to be blessed with friends. Even if they were a few friends, and even if they argued with each other, he'll still consider them friends. AFter all, this is the beginning, and there was tons of adventures to go after rescuing Azurill. Everything is going to be fine...

* * *

_Mt. Bristle B4F _

"MY ROCK POWER IS NOT AN ACT! KNEEL BEFORE ME!" screamed Konan throwing his new found Geo Pebbles like shooting bullets towards a Doduo, who was quickly defeated from the barrage of Geo Pebbles.

...Or maybe not.

"Concentrate, Konan!" yelled Mia while she and Natsu were both fightning off two Nidorinas.

"Leer!" commanded Natsu, glaring sharply at the Nidorina he was facing, making it scared and lowering its defense. "Scratch!" Natsu started rapidly scratching the Nidorina, but accidentally touched one of Nidorina's spikes and got poisoned.

"Ow!" shouted Natsu, backing away a little while clutching his hand.

"Natsu! Gh-!" Mia was distracted for a moment, then went back to battlling when her opponent was attacking her.

"Double Kick!" shouted the Nidorina Natsu was facing. Nidorina jumps into the air, flips twice, and shoots at Natsu with her leg extended.

"Gah!" shouted Natsu as he was sent to the ground due to the powerful blow.

"!" After seeing Natsu get injured, Mia's emotions turned to rage and she yelled a battle cry. "Tail Whip!" She jumps into the air above the Nidorina she was facing and hits her face with her tail repeatedly, decreasing Nidorina's defence a little by every blow. "Thundershock!" With a critical Thundershock, she defeats the Nidorina and rushes to go help Natsu.

"Scratch! Scratch! Scratch!" yelled Nidorina, scratching the defenceless Chimchar repeatedly with her claws. Chimchar's HP was decreasing. Not only that, but he was poisoned as well! If this kept up-

"RRRGGHHH! LEAVE HIM ALONE!" screamed Mia angrily. "Thundershock!" Mia's cheecks glowed yellow, and she sent multiple lightning bolts to Nidorina, pushing her away from Natsu. "Natsu! Are you alright?"

"Yeah, I'm fi-UGH!" Natsu tried to get back up, but he failed due to his injuries.

"Natsu!" shouted Mia, desperately trying to find an Oran Berry. She was able to find a Pecha Berry, but couldn't find a single Oran Berry.

Out of the corner of his eye, Konan spotted an Oran Berry lying on the ground and threw it to Mia. "Catch!"

Mia caught it in time. "Thanks!"

After Natsu was completely healed, he stood up, saying, "Thanks you guys! That was a good pick-me-up!"

Then, everyone heard groaning and saw Nidorina get back up, recovering from her electrical attack. Mia was about to finish her off, but Natsu put an arm in front of her. "Don't worry guys. This is my battle. I'll deal with this," the Chinchar ensured.

He turned back to the Nidorina and shouted, "Taunt!" Suddenly, he had a creepy look on his face, and was motioning Nidorina to come forward with his fingers.

Mia recognized that move and asked, "Natsu, what are you thinking? That move allows your oppnent to use moves that deal damage!"

"Really?!" asked Konan.

The Nidorina, now affected by the move's effects, roared and charged towards Natsu. Now, Natsu shouted, "Ember!" Natsu opens his mouth and shoots bolts of fire towards his opponent, defeating her quickly.

"Great job, Natsu!" cheered Mia.

"Yes! I did it!" said Natsu proudly.

"Great! Save your victory for later! Let's hurry and get going!" shouted Konan. "We have to rescue Azurill before that pedophille does weird things to him!"

"Pedophille?" echoed both Mia and Natsu.

"DROWZEE!"

"Ohhh..."

"Hold on! What kind of weird things are you talking about?" asked Natsu, bringing up the question from eariler, back from when Chatot was explaning about the Outlaw Board. Mia and Konan looked at each other and made a run for it. "Hey wait, guys!"

* * *

_Mt. Bristle B5F _

"Ooh! An Oran Berry!" Konan said, spotting an Oran Berry a few distances away from him. Just when he was about to go collect it, a Doduo appeared out of nowhere...and ate the Oran Berry!

Silence...then-

"GAH! THAT WAS MY ORAN BERRY YOU ATE! WHAT THE HELL'S WRONG WITH YOU, YA DAMN BIRD! GIVE IT BACK, DAMNIT!" cussed Konan, strangeling the Doduo's...two necks pretty tight.

"Konan! There's another enemy!" warned Natsu pointing to a Starly, flying towards them.

"I got it! I got it! I need to take my anger out on someone anyways!" revealed Konan, throwing the already fainted Doduo away and cracking his knuckles as he procceed towards the lone Starly. "Haaaaaaaa!" He charged towards the Starly, but the Starly flew to the air swiftly and whistled loudly.

"Hey! That's not fair! Fine! I'll fly too!" shouted Konan, flapping his arms. Unfortunely, he couldn't fly. "Damn, I forgot. Penguins can't fly. Well, I still won't lose! Prepare your-Aaaand you bought friends."

Above Konan, there were at least 10 Starlys now, ready to strike Konan. ...And they flew to the ground, pecking Konan as he fell to his knees.

"Oh no! Konan!" cried Natsu rushing towards him.

Then, Mia placed a hand on Natsu's shoulder and ensured him, "Don't worry! I can take them all on in one blow!"

"Help me!" shouted Konan.

"You sure?" called Mia.

"YES!"

"Okay! Don't say I didn't warn ya! Thundershock!" Due to Flying-Type's weakness with Electric-Types, and that Mia was at least one level above them, she defeated them all easily with one Thundershock. Now, there were ten roasted Starlys and one roasted Konan, who was caught in the blast.

Konan quickly got up and shouted at Mia, "What the hell?! *cough* *cough* I mean seriously?! Why didn't you tell me you were going to shoot me as well!"

"Hey, didn't you say you wouldn't yell at me? And besides, I just saved you."

"Still, you didn't-"

"Here," sighed Mia, throwing him a piece of Poke Gald.

"Ooh! Money!" squealed Konan clutching it like it was the last thing in the world. He totally forgotten that one gold piece does not mean he'll get rich. When he saw the number 59 in the front of the coin, he remembered. "Damnit! I forgot that one price was based on the front of a coin!"

"Satisifed? Let's go."

* * *

_Mt. Bristle B6F _

"Yay! Geo Pebbles and...37 Poke Gald," Konan said the last part in a dull tone.

"Don't worry, Konan! I'm sure that if you save up enough money, then you can buy something neat!" encouraged Natsu.

Before Konan could thank him, Mia shouted and pointed in the air, "Incoming! From the sky!" Very quickly, Natsu and Mia got to the ground and covered their heads. Konan was confused and didn't know what to do.

"Fury Attack!" shouted a Doduo who was falling from the sky. He lands on top of Konan's back and started pecking him repeatedly.

"Ow! Ooh! Eek! Ah!" shouted Konan. Then, he grabbed hold of one of Doduo's beaks and slowly got up in a red aura, scaring the Doduo. "Mwahahahaha...you damn birds...ARE REALLY PISSING ME OFF TODAY!"

With that being said, Konan used all of his strength to throw the Doduo at the sky like someone hitting a baseball and sending it towards the sky. "MWAHAHAHAHA! TAKE THAT BIRDIE! I'LL TAKE ON YOU BIRD TYPES ANY TIME!"

"Um...Konan? First, they're called Flying Types, not Bird Types. And second, you're a Flying Type too. Well, not exactly, but you still are a bird."

"...Oh."

* * *

_Mt. Bristle B7F _

"Guys! We have to think of a way to beat this guy!" reminded Natsu, preparing himself as he and his allies are about to face Nidorino.

Konan realized that back a few floors ago, there was an opponent similar to Nidorino and wondered outloud, "Hey! We faced this kind of person before! The only difference I see is that this guy is all pink, and the other two are blue!"

"Well, Konan, the other two we fought are called Nidorina, and this one is called Nidorino," explained Natsu.

"Oh! I get it! Those two species are transexual!"

Silence...

"WE ARE NOT TRANSEXUAL!" roared the Nidorino angrily twitching his left eye.

"Konan, what is wrong with you? Seriously? I mean-what is wrong with you today?" asked Mia, shocked and unhappy at Konan's theory, also knowing full well what that means.

Natsu was the only one confused. "Huh? What's transexual?" And he was supposed to be the smart member in the team.

"Nidorina is always female, while we Nidorinos are always male! GOT THAT?!" screamed Nidorino.

"...Really? My next guess was that you were always female and the blue ones were male," said Konan.

And from this day forward, there was a rumor about a Nidorino with anger issues involving something like the difference between genders.

"RRRRROOOOOOOOARRRRRRRR!" roared the furious Nidorino, charging towards Konan. "FOCUS ENERGY!" Nidorino's body becomes outlined in a red aura, and if Konan was lucky, he hoped that aura wasn't an aura of anger. Unfortunely, he was wrong.

"AAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!" screamed Konan, running around in circles while being chased by an angry Nidorino.

Natsu was cowering in fear behind a rock, and Mia was sitting on of the rock, laughing as she saw the poor Piplup get chased by the angry Nidorino.

"AAAAAAHHHHH! I'M SORRY! I'M SORRY! I FEEL AWFUL!" apologized Konan as he was running for his life.

"NOT AS AWFUL AS YOU'RE GONNA BE WHEN I'M DONE WITH YOU!" screamed the Nidorino.

* * *

_Mt. Bristle B8F _

"Remind me to never save you guys when you're in trouble," grumbled Konan, with bruises and bumps all over his body.

"It was your own fault for angering that Nidorino," reminded Mia.

"She's right, you know, Konan," agreed Natsu. "Hey, look at the bright side! At least we helped you at the very last second!"

"Yeah, only at the VERY last second. And I had only 1 HP left!"

"Well, aren't you lucky we had healing items with us then?' asked Mia. "Besides, you got some items to, like those two Wonder Orbs you found a while ago."

"Oh, by the way, what are Wonder Orbs anyways? They similiar to the seeds?" asked Konan.

"Not exactly," Natsu started to explain. "Wonder Orbs are magical items that have a variety of effects. There are different kinds."

"How can you tell which one's which? They're all blue!" said Konan, taking out one of his Wonder Orbs.

"Well, there's some small writing on each Orb, and it says the name of the Orb," said Natsu. "And it's the same for seeds."

"Wha-?! You never told me that before! You just told me before that all seeds were identical and were difficult to identify!"

"Oh, I forgot to mention to you? Oops..."

"...Somehow, I get the feeling that you purposely didn't know that."

"How can you say that?" defended Mia. "Everyone forgets now and then! Including Natsu! You have no right to accuse him!"

"Jeez, alright! I get it!" said Konan, rolling his eyes. He turned to Natsu and asked, "So, there are different effects? Every one of these Orbs?"

"Yup. But you have to be careful. After all you do have two Wonder Orbs, so plan carefully and-"

When Natsu said, 'Yup,' that was the signal Konan needed. He micheviously threw one towards Mia, who was looking to see if there were any enemies.

"Ow!" shouted Mia when the Wonder Orb hit her in the head. The Wonder Orb myseriously disappeared into thin air after it hit her, and so did Mia.

"Aaaahhhh! M-Mia! Where did you go?!" asked Natsu, running around in panic.

Konan did a V-sign with his fingers. "Yes! Mission accomplished!"

"K-konan! What did you do?!"

"Easy! I did a test run with those orbs and threw one to Mia! Huh, looks like Wrap Orb teleports someone to somewhere, right?"

"What?! You threw a Wrap Orb to Mia?!"

"Yeah. Oh, by the way, do you know where Mia is?"

"...She could be anywhere here! This is the first I've seen an Wrap Orb, but I have heard of it! She's somewhere in this floor! But she could be attacked by Pokemon! Or, even by a Monster House!"

"Come to think of it, you mentioned that before. What's a Monster House?"

"A Monster House is a special type of room located somewhere in floors! I'm not sure which! Plus, once you're inside a Monster House, large amounts of Pokemon will drop from the roof and attack whoever's in their territory!"

"...Crap crap crap!" shouted Konan, freaking out as well. Now, he and Natsu were screaming around, frailing their arms like they did when they heard the alarm back at the guild.

* * *

_Mt. Bristle B9F _

"THUNDERSHOCK!" screamed Mia, unleashing a very LARGE Thundershock towards a poor Natsu and Konan finally found her in the last floor, Mia was...pretty pissed off. So pissed, that she defeated all of the Pokemon in the last floor. Heck, not even a Monster House would stand against her once she's like this. There were yellow sparks surrounding her body, so not even Konan nor Natsu would go near her.

"Gee, if the last floor wasn't enough, she had to annihilate all the Pokemon in this floor too! Especially to that poor Starly!" said Konan, shivering in fear and feeling pity for the roasted Starly.

"...But Konan, it was your fault in the first place that made her like this," reminded Natsu. Just then, Mia started walking towards them, her hands behind her back, making Natsu and Konan freak out.

"H-hey...Mia! I-I made a huge mistake when I threw that Orb at you! W-what I-I'm trying to say is-OH WHAT THE HECK I'M SO SORRY! PLEASE DON'T BLAST ME WITH LIGHTNING!" begged Konan, on his knees and crying anime tears.

"...Hahahahahah!" laughed Mia. It wasn't an evil laugh. No, it was more like a happy girlish, cheerful laugh that made Konan and Natsu surprised. Actually, Natsu was more surprised than Konan. He rarely heard Mia laugh like that, and it was a long time since she did. "I never expected you to actually get down on your knees and beg! Guess today's the day, huh?"

"S-shut up!" said Konan standing up, a bit mad and embarrassed that he didn't have to get on his knees and beg. "Anyways, forget about it, okay?"

"Whatever. Anyways, I got some items for both of you!" Mia showed a variety of items she had in her hands.

"And why are you giving them to us?" asked Natsu, taking some items.

"Because my bag's already full."

"Awesome! Thanks, stupid mouse!" said Konan, grateful.

Mia's left eyes twitched in anger. "Stupid mouse, huh? Then, how about this, stupid birdbrain!"

"Hey! Don't call me that!"

"Then don't call me stupid mouse!"

"I'll keep calling you stupid mouse until the end of time!"

"Fine! I'll keep calling you stupid birdbrain to the end of time too!"

"Fine!"

"Fine!" With a huff, both of them walked away in opposite directions, leaving Natsu standing there.

"Um...guys? I already found the stairs."

* * *

_Mt. Bristle Peak _

Meanwhile, Azurill and Drowzee were climbing up the mountain when they came to a dead end. "Uh oh, it's a dead end," said Azurill. He turned to Drowzee and asked, "Mr. Drowzee, where's my lost item?"

"Sorry kiddo," said Drowzee, smirking darkly. "Your lost item's not here, that's for sure."

"H-huh?" Azurill started looking around, frantically. "M-my big brother-h-he's following us, right? He's coming, right?"

The outlaw almost laughed on how the kid hasn't caught on yet. "Nope, your big brother's not coming. I'll let you onto a little secret. I deceived you the whole time,' revealed Drowzee.

"H-huh?!"

"But never mind that. There's a little favor I wanna ask of you. See that small hole behind you?"

Azurill turned around and saw a small hole, just like Drowzee said.

"Well, there's a rumor that there's hidden treasure inside that hole!" explained Drowzee. "Unforutnely, I'm too big to fit in, and that's where you come in!" Azruill turned around, shocked and more frightened. "Don't worry. Just do as I say and I'll help you get out of here!"

"B-but.." Azurill started trembling now.

"Go on, get going!" ordered Drowzee, growing impatient. "And don't forget to bring the treasure with you!"

"W-WAAAAHHHH! I WANT MY BIG BROTHER!" cried Azurill, making a mad dash towards the exit, only to have his path blocked by the psychic outlaw.

"Hey! Stop that!" exclaimed Drowzee. Then, he sighed and rubbed the back of his head tiredly. "Sheesh! I said I'll take you home when you're done!"

Azurill didn't move, only continued to whimper.

"If you keep being difficult," Drowzee began to threaten. "It'll mean trouble for you!"

"H-help!"

"Hey! Stop!" shouted a familiar voice. Drowzee turned around and saw Konan, Natsu, and Mia stopping a few feet from him while they were panting for breath. It was clear that these three had to face a lot of Pokemon just to get here. They were all tired, injured, and dusty from the trip on top of the mountain.

"Leave Azurill alone! You're under arrest!" said Mia.

Drowzee took a step back nervously. "H-how did you find this place?"

Konan just laughed in triumph before standing on top of a rock and boastfully saying, "We're Team Pokepals, the Explorers of awesomeness, here to-"

"Hold on, when did we decide on 'Explorers of awesomeness?' We never planned that!" shouted Mia.

"Damnit, stupid mouse! You ruined my perfect line for our team! And it was supposed to be an awesome line too! And what do you suggest we do?"

"We say, 'Explorers of Victors!'"

"If we wanted to say that, we should have chose the name, 'Team Victors!'"

"But we didn't!"

"Exactly! Now shoo and I can continue my awesome line!"

"You mean ours."

"I meant what I said! Anyways, we're Team Pokepals, the Explorers of Awesomeness-"

"Determination!" added Mia.

"And Intelligence!" Natsu also piped up.

"Damnit, guys!"

"Hey, we wanted to add something else!" shouted Mia.

"Would you guys hurry up?!" shouted Drowzee impatiently.

"We're Team Pokepals, the Explorers of Awesomeness/Determination/Intelligence!" shouted all three members together.

"A-an exploration team?!" sputtered Drowzee. You came to apprehend me?!"

"That's exactly what we said!" said Konan. "Except for the apprehend part. Now prepare to-"

Then, everyone noticed that Natsu was shivering. "Huh? Are you...trembling?" asked Drowzee. Natsu was trembling in fear, but he's trying his best at not showing it, but he's doing a pretty bad job at it.

"A-ha! I figured it out!" smirked Drowzee. "You say that you're an exploration team, but you're total rookies!"

"Hey!" shouted Mia, defending Natsu. "Just because we're rookies doesn't mean we're not an exploration team! Besides, you're in no position to talk back at us, criminal!"

"Heh, that's right," said Drowzee, taking a threatening stance. "I'm a wanted Pokemon, and I've got a bounty on my head. But can you do the job? Can you confront this criminal and bring him to justice? Because the way I see it, you three are to chicken to fight back!"

"Heh, I'm not scared of you!" shouted Konan.

"That's right! I've taken worse foes than you!" Mia had to agree with that.

"But stupid mouse, how could you do that when you, me, and Natsu are only at level 11?"

"Not helping, stupid birdbrain! Anyways, we can do this, right Natsu?"

The Chimchar hesitated, but after seeing the terrified look on Azurill's face, and seeing his friends' determination, he couldn't help but feel a surge of confidence. "Y-yes!" said Natsu, now in a fightning position. "We won't lose!"

Drowzee burst out laughing. "I've been chased by all sorts of exploration teams every day, so how can you expect three rookies to take me down?" He ceased his laughter for a moment. "Fine then, let's see if you can take me down. Show me what you've got!"

Very quickly, Konan got out his second Warp Orb and hurled it towards Azurill. "Get out of here, Azurill!"

The Orb hit Azurill on the forehead, and disappeared. However, Azurill did not.

"What?! That's impossible!" shouted Konan.

"Confusion!" shouted Drowzee. His eyes glowed blue, and shoots blue waves of energy towards Konan.

"Gah!" cried Konan in pain after begin hit by the attack.

"Konan!" cried Natsu. "That Confusion attack sometimes confuses the target! Are you okay?"

"Ugh...when you mean confuse, do you mean like I can't see properly and I'm getting dizzy?" groaned Konan, wobbling around.

"Yes!...Oh, you're affected."

"Hmm...nice work, professor," said Drowzee inpressed. "But can you take this? Con-"

"Oh no you don't! Thunder Wave!" cried Mia, releashing small bolts of electricity from her body towards Drowzee. It hit Drowzee directly, paralyzing him.

"W-what the-!? I can't move!"

"Cool! What kind of move was that, stupid mouse?" asked Konan as Natsu came running towards the confused Konan.

"Thunder Wave paralyzed the target if hit correctly," explained Mia. "Azurill, please hide behind the rocks!"

"O-ok!" obeyed Azurill, quickly do as Mia asked.

"Here Konan! Eat this Persim Berry! Say, 'Ah!'" ordered Natsu, trying to shove the berry into Konan's mouth.

Konan obeyed and closed his mouth once he felt the berry was in...but he also bit Natsu's whole hand as well.

"AAAAHHHHH! MY HAND!" screamed Natsu in pain.

"Oh! Swohhy," apologized Konan, chewing onto the Persim Berry. Then, he started spitting it out and shouted, 'What the hell is this?! It's so dry!"

"Well, it's a Persim Berry, and many Pokemon have different tastes."

"Guys?! He's breaking the paralysis!" shouted Mia.

"Then blast him again with your Thunder Wave!" shouted Konan, his vision much clearer.

"I can't paralyze him again if he's already paralyzed!" Then, Mia ran back to her allies' side.

"Hahahaah!" laughed Drowzee, fully cured. "Do you honestly think that that'll be enough to defeat me?!"

"We'll just see! Eat this!" shouted Konan, throwing a Sleep Seed at him. The seed hit Drowzee directly in the eyes, caushing his to shout in pain a little. "Ha! How do you like that? That'll put you to sleep for sure!"

"Heh...just kidding! Hypnosis!" Drowzee makes signs with his arms and hands and was facing towards Konan.

"Watch out!" shouted Natsu, shoving Konan out of the way. Then, he got affected by the Hynothesis attack and fell asleep.

"N-Natsu?! What the hell-what did he do to you?!" shouted Konan, shaking Natsu frantically.

"Hahahahaha! My Insomnia ability prevents me from falling asleep! Your friend was too stupid to even protect you!" laughed Drowzee.

That made Mia mad. "DROWZEE!" yelled Mia, charging towards Drowzee. "Tail Whip!" Mia jumps into the air, and brings her tail down towards Drowzee hard.

"Gh-!"

"Now, Thundershock!" A bolt of electricity hit Drowzee directly due to the fact that Mia was close to him now.

"Gah!" Drowzee fell on his knees.

"Now, for the finishing blow! T-"

"Disable!" Drowzee's eyes glowed blue and he releashed three blue rings fro his body towards Mia, making her stop her attack.

"W-what the-Thundershock!" Mia tried using her Thundershock move, but it didn't have any effect. "Thundershock! Thundershock! Why won't it work?!'

"Heh, Headbutt!" **SLAM! **Drowzee slammed his head towards Mia, sending her away.

"Aaaahhh!" she screamed before crashing towards the ground, injured.

"Hey, mouse!" shouted Drowzee before running towards her.

"I'm fine," said Mia, standing up quickly, not showing any pain, but Konan could tell she's in pain. "But what was that? I couldn't use my Thundershock."

"You really want to know?" asked Drowzee confident. "Alright then, the last move that my tagret used, in this case, you, well, your PP for your Thundershock is completely 0. Meaning you can't use it."

"No way," said Konan.

"Now, then...now that that's done...Confusion!" Drowzee used a full on, critical Confusion on both remaining members, sending them both crashing into a wall.

"Gah!" both of them yelled as they slid to the ground. They both realized they were short on HP and both stood up at the same time.

"Huh? You're still willing to fight? Even though you're injured?" asked Drowzee.

"Don't get all confident! I'm more stronger than you think!" shouted Konan getting in a fightning position.

"That's right! I won't stop till the end!" said Mia. She thought, _'If Natsu was awake, I would have told both him and Konan to run for it with Azurill while I hold Drowzee off! Damnit!' _

Meanwhile, Natsu was starting to wake up and rubbed his eyes. He thought, _'Man, what a nice rest!' _Then, he looked around and saw an injured Konan and Mia being corned by Drowzee. _'Ah! Mia! Konan! I have to go help them!' _

Natsu started to get up, but felt fear overcome him. _'W-what's this?! I can't move! B-but why?! I-I know I'm afraid, but now's not the time! Then again...' _He looked at Drowzee and caught a look. Drowzee's face was full of hatred, sadistic, and thrilling. _'Even if I do fight, what then? What if we don't defeat him? What if I really don't have the courage to fight?' _

Natsu clutched his fists tightly and looked at his friends again. This time, he saw Mia look at him and saw her nod her head a little. Natsu knew what that meant. That meant the signal for him to run away and take Azurill with him. But...he couldn't! While he was traveling with Mia during all those times, Mia would always defend him, no matter what and Natsu would do nothing but praise Mia afterwards.

Natsu thought, _'No...if I just keep running away and relying on Mia all the time just because I'm afraid of messing things up...then I'll never made my family proud...The truth is...I'm just scared...!' _

"And once I'm done with the two of you, I'll take care of that scared little coward that's sleeping," revealed Drowzee, oblivious that Natsu was awake.

"Natsu isn't a coward!" shouted Konan, surprising all of them. "Sure he may be timid and shy and afraid to fight back sometimes and-oh what the heck, he is a coward! But even though he's a coward, he tries his best and is kind to others nevertheless! And, it's possible for him to change!"

Natsu was shocked the most and remembered a few floors back that Konan told him that he could change. He thought, _'Konan, I want to change, I really do! But...it's just not that simple for me!' _

"HEY, NATSU!" yelled Konan at the top of his lungs. "I DON'T CARE IF YOU'RE SLEEPING OR NOT, BUT I'M PRETTY DAMN SURE YOU CAN HEAR ME! IF YOU REALLY WANT TO CHANGE, THEN FOR ONCE, JUST ACT WITHOUT THINKING! YOU GOT THAT, NATSU?!"

Konan's yell and words of encouragement gave Natsu back his confidence. Immediantly, the Chimchar grabbed something from his bag and charged towards Drowzee, yelling a battle cry.

"What the-?!" Drowzee turned around to see Natsu charging towards him and began charging an attack. "Take this! Confusion!"

"Natsu!" shouted Konan and Mia. Luckily, Natsu dodged in time and continued running towards Drowzee with speed Mia has never seen before.

"LINK COMBO ATTACK!" Natsu yelled at the top of his lungs. He used Leer at Drowzee first, making the outlaw flinch in fear, then Natsu used Scratch rapidly against Drowzee, and finally, Drowzee used Ember right at Drowzee's face. All three attacks all at the same time finally defeated Drowzee as he collasped to the ground.

Natsu was breathing heavily, his legs wobbling. He wasn't as injured as hard as Mia and Konan, but he was still injured. Everything was silence...then-

"That. Was. AWESOME!" shouted Konan running towards Natsu. Then, he started asking questions, "Hey, how did you do that?!" or "Where'd you learn that?!"

"Slow down, Konan!" said Natsu. "I can't take all questions at once! Ok, I used that Link Box to link all three of my moves, Lerr, Scratch, and Ember. Then, I unleashed the attacks into one big attack."

"That's so cool! Teach me how to do that!"

"Unfortuenly, I already delink my moves and there's only one use of the Link Box."

"Noooooooooo!"

"Are you alright, Natsu?" asked Mia concerned, ignoring Konan.

"I'm fine. How about you two? Are you two alright?"

"Of course! You honestly think the great Konan would be go down after that fight?" laughed Konan confident before accidentally tripping on a rock and landed facedown on the ground.

"...Appearently, yes," said Mia. "Hey, where did Azurill go?"

"Over here!' a familiar voice called. The three Pokemon looked over to a boulder that was nearby, where the small water-type peeked his head out, making sure it was safe to come out. Once it was, Azurill ran towards them.

"Are you alright? You're not hurt, are you?" asked Natsu.

Azurill nodded. "I'm alright."

Everyone sighed in relief. Konan stood up and brushed the dust off of him. "Well, that's a relief!" said Mia. "We should go already. Your big brother's waiting!"

"Ok!"

"Um...guys? We have one more problem though," said Konan, pointing to Drowzee's unconscious figure. "How are we going to carry this guy out of here?"

* * *

Once everyone got out of the mountains, they found a Magnezone and two Magnemites waiting for them along with Marill. Natsu explained that they were the Pokemon Police, whose job, obviously, is to find and catch outlaws like Drowzee, who woke up startled after Magnezone place handcuffs on his wrists.

Then, Magnezone turned to Team Pokepals and introduced himself, "ZZZZZT! I am Magnezone, the primary officer in this region! ZZZTTT! Thanks to you, we were able to arrest a wanted outlaw! ZZTT! We own you thanks for your cooperation! We will send the reward to your guild later! Thank you again! ZZTT!"

The officer turned to face the outlaw. "Now come with us! ZZZTT!"

Drowzee mumbled something as the three electric-types were escorting the outlaw from the mountain. Then, Marill rushed towards his younger brother. "Azurill!"

"Marill!" Azurill broke down into tears as he also rushed towards his younger brother before embracing him. "Waaahh! Marill! It was so scary!"

"You ok, Azurill? Are you hurt?" asked Marill.

"The little guy's fine," said Natsu. "He wasn't harmed."

"Wait, what?" asked Konan.

"What?"

"What did you say?"

"I said that he wasn't harmed."

"No, before that!"

"I said the little guy's fine."

"...WHAT?!"

"What?"

"Azurill was really a boy?! I thought he was a girl!"

After Konan made that statement, Mia facepalmed while Natsu's jaw dropped to the floor. Marill and Azurill, who were in their little brotherly reunion moment, stopped for a second before Azurill said, "But, I'm a boy!"

"But you sure don't sound like one!"

Marill laughed softly. "Well, I can't blame you. I sometimes mistaken Azurill as a girl. Anyways, we won't forget what you did for us, Konan, Natsu, and Mia! Thank you!"

Azurill bowed his head politely. "Yes! Thank you very much! Thank you for rescuing me!"

"Aw, you don't have to thank us!" said Konan with a grin on his face. "After all, we're Team Pokepals, Explorers of Awesomeness/Determination/and Intelligence!"

"So, you decided to add ours in?" asked Natsu surprised.

"Yup! That way, we'll be able to share everything! We are a team, after all!"

Natsu smiled. He was grateful for Konan, and for finally able to stand up for himself for once, even in a life-or-death situation. He didn't have the courage before, now, he had the courage. And he had both Mia and Konan to thank for.

"Oh! By the way, what do you think Chatot is going to do once he finds out that we left the guild without saying a word and how we're looking all battered up?"

* * *

"YOU STUBBORN, ARROGANT, NAUGHTY, FOOLISH, IMMATURE, OVERCONFIDENT CHILDREN! FIRST, I HEAR YOU'VE GONE OFF SOMEWHERE WITHOUT TELLING ANYONE OR TAKING A REQUEST! I MEAN, YOU HAD EVERYONE WORRY! ESPECIALLY ME AND THE GUILDMASTER! AFTER ALL, YOU'RE STILL APPRENTICES! YOU COULD HAVE GOTTEN HURT(which you are now) OR WORSE, KILLED! NOW WHAT HAVE YOU GOT TO SAY FOR YOURSELF?!"

After finally arriving back to the guild with severe wounds, Team Pokepals were trying to sneak past Chatot, eat dinner, and then run back to their room as fast as they can. Well, that was their plan, but they wouldnt even get two steps inside the second floor.

"We're sorry, Chatot," apologized Team Pokepals for the hundredth million time.

"Hmph! You should be! Normally, I would punish guild members in a sitaution like this, but just this once, I'll let this go, seeing how you three are too injured and tired to deal with any punishment. Anyways, I've gotten the bounty from Officer Magnezone for the captured outlaw." Chatot held up a bag of Poke Gald. "Here's your share of the reward."

Konan took the bag out of Chatot's arms and saw 3,000 Poke Gald inside. "Yay! We're rich!"

"Oh! Almost forget!" Swiftly, Chatot took the bag from Konan and took out huge amounts of Poke Gald before giving the bag back to Konan. When Konan opened it, there was only 300 Poke Gald inside.

"What?! Only 300 Poke Gald?!"

Chatot raised an eyebrow. "But, of course! It's all part of the training! And we expect more effort tommorow!"

After Chatot left, all that remains is a sulking Konan on the ground, a wide open Natsu, and a shocked Mia.

"That's not fair..." complained Natsu. Then he sighed and said, "I mean, I would have been happier if our reward was bigger, but that's alright!"

Konan looked at Natsu. "Why are you so happy? We've just been robbed!"

"Well, we did save Azurill," pointed out Mia.

"And it was all because of your dreams, Konan!" said Natsu. "We learned about Azurill's distress."

Konan realized that he was right and thought, _'He's right. I can't very well explain it, but that scream I heard from Azurill, and that vision...were all in the future! What the hell does that mean? And why was I able to see something like that?' _

Konan's thoughts broken out due to a sound of a growl.

"Oh, my stomach growled," said Natsu embarrassed.

Then, a growl came from Konan's stomach as well, making Natsu and Mia laugh. "Ha ha ha! Your stomach growled too!" laughed Natsu. "We were so focused on rescuign Azurill, we didn't even notice!"

Then, Mia's stomach growled, making her flush in embarrassment. "Ha hahaha! Looks like Mouse's stomach growled the loudest!" laughed Konan.

"A-anyways! We should get dinner! Let's go!" said Mia, wanting to avoid the subject and trying to hide her embarrassment.

* * *

_At dinnertime... _

Everyone was munching onto their dinner, and talking to their friends too. Konan was telling some guild members about what happened today. Konan had one foot on the table and was telling everything. Well, he did made some changes...

"...And then, I was like, 'Take that, Drowzee!' And used Bubblebeam on him while my other allies were down after one attack from Drowzee. Confusion, I think? Anyways, After Drowzee was deafedt by my hands, he got on his knees and started beggin for his life and was sorry that he acted so immature and for a reward, he gave me a cookie for sparing his life, which he will never forget!"

"THAT'S NOT WHAT HAPPENED YOU DOPE!" shouted Mia, annoyed. "And for your information, Natsu was the one who defeated him!"

"And it was a very delicious cookie indeed," continued Konan, ignoring the outburst. Natsu continued laughing with Konan's ridiculous story.

"Hey, don't just ignore me, idiot!" shouted Mia pointing her finger at Konan.

"Who's the idiot, stupid idiotic mouse!" shouted Konan back. Now both of them were glaring at each other.

"Ugh! Will you shut up?! You are such an annoying birdbrain!"

"Shut up! You haven't said anything new to me ever since I met you, retard!"

Then, Chatot came over and peck both of their heads once, and needless to say, his pecks were pretty damn hard! While Mia and Konan were clutching their heads in pain while Chatot scolded, "Hush! You two are so loud! Now apologize!"

"Grr...fine. I'm sorry," said Konan.

"...I'm sorry too," told Mia.

"Good!" chirped Chatot happily as he walked back to his seat. And then, Konan just had to flare up another argument.

"...Stupid mouse."

And thus, the argument entertained everyone at dinner as Mia and Konan argued and shouted at each other while clawing at each other, saying things like, "God damn jerk!" or, "Stupid mouse/birdbrain!"

* * *

_Later that night... _

**BOOM! **"Eek!" squealed Natsu, covering himself his bed covers. That night, it was really stormy outside, so the team couldn't sleep well. "It looks really stormy tonight." Then, the Chimchar realized something and turned to Konan. "Oh yeah! The night before me and Mia met you, there was a storm. The day after, we found you on the beach unconscious. Do you remember anything about being zoned out on the beach?"

"Hmm...A storm, huh? Well...nope! Can't remember!" said Konan perfectly normal.

Konan sighed in disappointment. "I knew this wouldn't be easy. But that's alright. Try to remember little by little. Anyways, we have to get up early tommorow, so let's get some rest."

Later that night, it was still raining cats and dogs (That's just means it's raining hard) and the team couldn't get much sleep due to the thunder rumbling. "Psst! Psst!" hissed Natsu. "Konan! Mia! Are you two awake?"

"What is it, Natsu?" asked Mia. Konan was trying to go back to sleep.

"Well, I've been thinking all over, and that strange dream you had, Konan, maybe it does have something to do with you personally," explained Natsu.

"...Come again?" asked Natsu, now paying attention.

"Well, it's just this feeling I get. I mean, I sure don't know any Piplup who dreams about the future, and I've never heard of a human turn into a Piplup either. That's why I think those two are somehow connected."

_'Finding my memories...in my dreams?' _thought Konan. _'How am I supposed to do that?' _

"I don't know what you were like when you were a human, Konan," continued Natsu. "But I think you were a good person. After all, it was your dream that helped us catch Drowzee. And, you know, time sure is getting messed up all around the world. No one knows why, but everyone believes the Time Gears are involved."

"T-You woke me up just so you can explain the history of Time Gears?" asked Konan, his tone annoyed and a bit mad.

"Shhh! It might be good for you, so hush!" scolded Mia.

"They say Time Gears are scattered all around the world," explained Natsu. "Like in a forest, or a cavern, or even a volcano! But at the center of such places is what we call a Time Gear. Tomes Gears protect time and keeps time flowing properly in each region."

"Huh, interesting," said Konan. "Hey, what happens if a region loses its Time Gear?"

"Well, I don't really know the answer. But if I had to guess, then the flow of time will probably stop in that region too if the Time Gear went missing. So, maybe that's why everyone never disturbs Time Gears. Even the toughest criminals aren't stupid to steal one."

Meanwhile, in a forest somewhere, a shadow was dashing in the area, until it appeared in front of a large green light. "Hmm? Do my eyes deceive me?" wondered the figure outloud as he reached out his arms to touch the glowing green light. "But...yes it is! I found it! A Time Gear! But...this is the first of many..."

* * *

**Hope: Whew! Done and done! And this chapter is past 13,000 words!**

**Konan: What?! Well, we must certainely be famous!**

**Hope: If you call this story having 8 reviews famous, you must be dumb.**

**Konan: What?! The fans don't appreciate this story?! But I'M the main character! **

**Natsu: There, there, Konan! We'll be famous soon!**

**Mia: Sure! Let the stupid birdbrain cry all her want!**

**Konan: You wanna go, stupid mouse?!**

**Mia: Bring it!**

**Hope: Hold on! Don't start a fight! I create you, so I can uncreate you!**

**Mia and Konan: Hmph!**

**Hope: Anyways, I'm not doing this story for a while due to schoolwork and updating other stories, so you guys will have to wait! Wait! One more announcement! Please tell others about this story if you can! Well, see ya!**


	5. Meeting Team Triolet!

**Hope: Hey! I'm back! And this time, I'll try to focus more on this fic since everyone's itching for more chapters!**

**Konan: About time too!**

**Hope: Anyways, sorry for the wait! I'm on Christmas Break now, but I still have HW! Well, here's the chapter! Oh! Mia, the disclaimer!**

**Mia: Mage of Hope does not own Pokemon, only the Pokemon Company does! **

* * *

"UP AND AT 'EM! IT'S MORN-ACK!" Loudred never finished his sentence, because Konan had thrown a barrage of pillows at Loudred.

"Heh heh...Score one for Team Pokepals..." chuckled Konan before grabbing another pillow and placing it on his head before going back to sleep.

"Ack! L-Loudred! Are you alright?" shrieked Natsu, rushing towards Loudred, who was completely covered in a mountainful of pillows.

"I'll help out too!" Mia offered, jumping out of bed. _'And it's not for Loudred!' _

"YYYYAAAAAHHHHH!" screamed Loudred, obviously in a rage since he popped out of the mountain of pillows by himself.

"AAAAHHHHHHHH!" screamed Natsu, freaked out before trying to jump into Mia's arms. However, Mia didn't see Natsu coming, so Natsu just fell to the ground on his butt.

"Ah-! Are you ok, Natsu?" asked Mia, offering her hand to the Chimchar.

"Yeah, I'm fine-"

"KONAN!" roared Loudred, climbing up the ladder to Konan's small bed, which would later have to be fixed later due to Loudred stomping on it.

* * *

"What in tarnation is taking Loudred and Team Pokepals so long?" sqwaked Chatot angrily. "My goodness, it's like they're children!"

"Um...Chatot? They kinda still are," pointed out Bidoof.

"Nobody asked you, Bidoof!" snapped Chatot.

"AAAAAAHHHHH! I'M SORRY! AHHH! I WON'T PELT YOU WITH PILLOWS! EVER! AHH!" screamed an awfully familiar voice.

"A BIT TOO LATE FOR THAT, BUD!" screamed back Loudred.

Everyone looked at each other and wondered, _'The new kid pelted Loudred with pillows? ...Is he asking for a death wish?' _

Finally, Team Pokepals and Loudred finally arrived at the briefing room. But that wasn't what shocked them the most. It was what they saw.

Everyone saw Loudred carrying Konan over his shoulder, Natsu looked pretty worried, but tried his best to hide it, and Mia looked quite amused. Konan had a HUGE red spot on his butt, and was screaming and cursing all over the place. Loudred was arguing back with Konan and even slapped him on the butt. Hard.

_'Ooh, that's gotta hurt,' _everyone thought. Even Chatot was showing pity for the poor boy.

* * *

"...AND THREE! SMILES GO FOR MILES!" yelled everyone.

"Ok, everyone! Time to go to work!~" sang Chatot.

"HOORAY!"

While everyone was leaving, Konan was rubbing his butt in pain. "Owww...did he really had to hit me hard?"

"Well, you kinda did deserve it, seeing how you pelted him with pillows," reminded Natsu. "But at least he let you off with a warning!"

"Yeah, and THEN giving me another slap on the butt as a warning! Ow...Nobody mention this incident...EVER."

"Ah! There you three are!" chirped Chaot, walking towards them. "Konan, though you are a naughty troublemaker, I'm terribly sorry for...your abuse from Loudred."

_'He was going to say, pain to the butt from Loudred, wasn't he?!' _thought Konan. It took all of his strength to keep himself still and not try to tackle Chatot and try to pluck his feathers off to make a hat.

"Anyways, you just have to do jobs on the Job Bulletin Board and the Outlaw Notice Board! That's all!"

After arriving at the second floor, Natsu spoke, "Wait, Konan! I have something for you! Drink it!" He handed Konan a small bottle from his Explorer Bag.

Konan caught it and drank without hesitation. "Whoa! This drink is so refreshing! And I'm no longer feeling pain from my butt either! What is it?"

"I made it yesterday!" bragged Natsu happily. "It's Natsu's Oran Berry Surprise!"

"...You mean, you just put Oran Berries in here and shake it up?" asked Konan.

"...That's the whole ingredients, yes," said Natsu, a big block of depression smacking him over the head. "But not just that! I have another secret! And it's Plain Seeds!"

"If it's a secret, you shouldn't have said that," pointed out Konan.

"I...was never good at keeping secrets," admitted Natsu, a bigger block of depression smacking him over the head.

"Hey! What do Plain Seeds taste like, anyways? I heard that they basically have no effect whatsoever," wondered Konan.

"Come to think of it, I've never tasted Plain Seeds either," admitted Mia. "But I have some with me right now." She fished out a few Plain Seeds from her Explorer Bag.

"...Why do you have them with you?" asked Konan.

"...Honestly, I have no idea why. So, let's test them out." All three took one Plain Seed and ate it.

"BLEH! IT'S HORRIBLE! Tastes like garbage!" complained Konan, spitting the Plain Seed out and then stomping on it.

"It's...AWFUL!" agreed Natsu spitting out the Plain Seed he ate.

Mia however, was just chewing it like she just doesn't care. "What? This is actually pretty good."

"WHAT?!" Natsu and Konan shouted, rushing towards Mia.

"T-that's impossible! You must have gotten a good Plain Seed then!" accused Konan.

"Of course! My special Oran Berry Juice must have been so good due to having good Plain Seeds!" said Natsu.

"It was only good cause it was mixed with Oran Berries! Which they actually have a good taste!" pointed out Konan.

"Fine, I'll eat another Plain Seed. But this time, we'll share the same one by splitting it up," said Mia. She took another Plain Seed, and split it into three pieces, which Natsu and Konan took the other two pieces. All three ate them, and then...

"Ack! This tastes even worse than the last one!" complained Konan.

"This one too!" agreed Natsu.

However, Mia just kept on chewing. "Huh, this one's better."

"There's something obviously wrong with your tastes!" said Konan.

"Well, there are Pokemon who think Plain Seeds are good, but there's so rare," said Natsu.

"Well, we've got a rare type here then!" said Konan, patting Mia's head like a child.

"Stop treating me like a kid! I'm not one!" shouted Mia, getting Konan's hand off her head.

"Wait, how old are you again?"

"12!"

"Then you are a kid!"

"Um...guys? Don't we have some jobs to do?" reminded Natsu.

"Oh, that's right! Let's see! Here's one! Actually, it's the only one, but whatever!" said Konan, reaching out for the only request at the Job Bulletin Board. Just then someone else swiped it from him before he could even reach it.

Konan turned to see a Hunter with a bright yellow ribbon on his...neck holding the request. Konan shouted, "Hey! I saw that first!"

"Sorry, kid! Better luck next time!" taunted the Haunter.

"Look, not that I care about stupid birdbrain here," said Mia, that last comment making Konan's jaw drop. "But that was our request! We saw it, heck, we even touched it first! So, hurry up and give that back to us, or you'll have me to deal with!"

Then, a Mawile with a bright yellow ribbon on her head appeared at the Haunter's side and said, "Devin, I-I think we should do what they say. We don't want to get in trouble with another fight, do we?"

"See? Even she agrees! Now, fork it over!" commanded Mia.

"P-please do so! We don't want any trouble!" sputtered Natsu.

The Hunter named Devin sighed before saying, "Fine! Well, I did take it while being unfair." After handing the request back to Konan, he introduced, "The name's Devin by the way! And this here is Claire!"

"N-nice to meet you!" said Claire the Mawile, bowing her head.

"And I'm Autumn!" said a Froslass with a bright yellow ribbon her head, coming up to them.

"Autumn! What are you doing here? Didn't we tell you to go wait?" asked Devin, surprised.

"Yeah, but you guys were taking too long! So I thought to come back here to see what was up! And it looks like you were going to fight another team again!"

"No I wasn't!"

"Well, you were begging for one!" pointed out Konan. "Strange girl is right!"

Autumn nudged Devin hard. "See? We can't get in trouble with Chatot again! Or this time, he'll give us no dinner for a week! And hey! What do you mean, strange girl?!" Autumn shouted to Konan, hitting him on the head.

"Ow! Anymore and you might be an old lady!"

"Who's an old lady?!"

While Autumn and Konan were comically arguing, Claire reminded, "Devin, shouldn't we get going?"

"Oh, yeah! You're right!" agreed Devin. "Well, sorry about that! We're Team Triolet, Silver Rank team!(OCs in this chapter created by Makaidos) Even though you guys are rookies, we'll let you off the hook and-"

"Um...Devin?" interrupted Claire shyly. "They left."

"WHAT?!"

* * *

_Beach Cave B1F _

"Hehehe, suckers!" chuckled Konan with a huge grin on his face.

"That was a bit rude, just leaving them at the guild like that," admitted Natsu.

"Nah, they'll get over it! Hmm...it says we have to rescue some Pichu...on Beach Cave B5. Hold on, isn't that where the dungeon ends?"

"Yes, and where we had to fight Koffing and Zubat," added Natsu.

"Hey, not that I care what happened to those goons, but whatever happened to them?" asked Mia.

"Who cares?" said Konan casually placing his arms behind his head. "Hey, Mia. You were a Pichu once too, right? I mean, you are a Pikachu, and Pichus evolve into Pikachus."

"Ooh! Ooh! Mia was so cute as a Pichu!" squealed Natsu. "There are so many cute stories I so want to tell!"

"Really? Like what?" asked Konan curiously and then taking out a pen and notepad out of his bag.

"..." Mia didn't say anything, though she was red in the face. She didn't do a single thing to try to stop Natsu.

"Well, once we were handcuffed together," explained Natsu as Konan excitedly took notes. "And then we had to go to the bathroom together, sleep together, and even bathe together!"

_'Whoa! They had to even bathe each other? This is so going on my blackmail list!' _thought Konan. You see, a few days ago, Konan made a list of things to get back at the people who made him mad, and the ones at the top of the list were Mia, Loudred, and finally, Chatot. So far, those three were the only ones on his list, and he managed to get back at Mia and Loudred, but he was wondering what to do with Chatot without getting caught.

"A-anyways!" interrupted Mia, flustered. "We should get going! There's the stairs right there! Let's go!" With that, she approached the stairs first and climbed down.

Natsu looked at Konan, confused. "Did...I say something wrong?"

Konan clapped a hand onto Natsu's shoulder and said, "I'll tell you when you're older."

"But, I'm 14 years old."

"...I'll tell you when you much older."

* * *

_Beach Cave B2F_

"Thundershock!" cried Mia, unleashing an Electric-Type move towards a Kabuto, defeating it quickly.

"Man! These guys aren't as tough as they were last time we were here!" groaned Konan tossing another defeated Kabuto towards a pile of other defeated Pokemon.

"Well, we did get stronger the past few days, so it's no wonder we would surpass this dungeon," explained Natsu.

"Mud-Slap!" cried a Shellos, attacking Natsu from behind. He hurls mud towards Natsu, hitting him in the head numerous times.

"Ow! Ow! E-ember!" Natsu counter attacked by shooting bolts of fire from his mouth and towards the Shellos, knocking it out quickly.

"Nice one, Natsu!" cheered Konan.

"Huh, that Ground-Type attack didn't have much effect on me, and Fire-Types are supposed to be weak against Ground-Types," muttered Natsu, looking at his injuries, which were very small.

"That's because you're getting stronger, Natsu! Soon, you'll be able to overcome any attack coming from any Pokemon in Beach Cave!" encouraged Mia happily.

"! Look out, you guys! Pound!" Konan's arm glowed, and he slammed it against a Kabuto, who was planning to attack him and his team from behind.

"Whoa! Looks like your senses are developing as well, Konan!" cheered Natsu.

"Really? That's so cool! But its so hard to level up when you fight against weaker opponents!"

"That's because the stronger you get, the more weaker your former enemies become," Natsu explained. "And if you fight your former enemies, you won't have much experience points even after defeating them."

"Well, that's a bummer. Hey! I see the stairs! Awesome! Three more floors and we'll rescue our client soon enough!"

* * *

_Beach Cave B3F _

"Ugh! Knock out one and another appears! More and more annoying enemies!" complained Konan as he and his team were fighting off a mob of enemy Pokemon.

"Harden!" cried out a Kabuto, increasing his defense.

"Now one of them just increased his defense! Ugh! Time to use my new move!" cried Konan.

"When did you level up? Thundershock!" Mia asked before attacking another enemy.

"Just a while ago! Water Sport!" shouted Konan. He lifted up his head before spraying water from his mouth towards the air, spraying rain everywhere and affecting everyone.

"Oh, no! Why did it have to be that move?" complained Natsu before dodging a move from an enemy.

"Why? What happened?" asked Konan before ducking his head to dodge a blow.

"That move, Water Sport, isn't an offensive move, but it can reduce the power of Fire-Type moves in an area! In other words, my Fire-Type moves won't have much effect against our opponents now!" explained Natsu before puling out some seeds.

"Stupid birdbrain! You idiot!" yelled Mia, strangling Konan by the bow.

"H-hey! Less talking, more fighting! Look out behind you!" warned Konan, pointing behind Mia. There were three Corsolas in the air, about to attack Mia from behind. Instead of using a move, Mia just threw Konan towards the three Corsolas with all of her might. This resulted in having the weak Corsolas defeated quickly, and causing Konan to fall to the ground facedown.

"Ow! The hell was that for, stupid mouse!" shouted Konan, clutching onto his nose...er...beak?

"You deserved it!" shouted back Mia.

"Guys! There are too many of them! Luckily, I spotted the stairs!" revealed Natsu.

"I got an idea, guys! All we have to do barge our way towards the stairs!" said Konan, kicking aside a Kabuto.

"And how exactly do we do that?" asked Mia.

Konan let out an evil sinister grin. "Do you have to ask? On the count of three, we'll do it! One..."

"H-hold on, Konan! We can't just-"

"Two..."

"Stupid birdbrain! Listen to Natsu! We can't-"

"Three! CHARGE! Bubblebeam!"

Right at that moment, Konan and his friends charged through the mob of enemies using force. What kind of force? Well, let's just say that the Pokemon involved in the mob were going to get drenched, electrified, or burned during the whole chaos.

* * *

_Beach Cave B4F _

"That was pretty stupid but smart of you, stupid birdbrain!" praised Mia to Konan. Team Pokepals were now taking a break and siting down somewhere in one of the floors.

"Heh, a nice but mean comment coming from you, stupid mouse! First time!" grinned Konan, panting a bit. Then, he turned to Natsu and asked, "Oh, by the way, aren't we sort of criminals now?"

"Um...what do you mean, Konan?"

"I've been wondering about this, but wouldn't Pokemon become outlaws if they attacked other Pokemon?" asked Konan.

"Well, normally that would be the case, but we attacked Pokemon IN Mystery Dungeons, so other Pokemon would think of that as self-defense. After all, those Pokemon attacked us first. And even if we attacked them first, it wouldn't exactly make us criminals. If someone reported us attacking Pokemon in a Mystery Dungeon, then the Pokemon Police would have just shrugged it off. However, if you attacked an innocent Pokemon for no good reason whatsoever, of course someone will report you and then you would be an outlaw," explained Natsu.

"Oh! I see!" said Konan thumping his fist onto his palm. Then, he got out an Oran Berry and chew on it. Suddenly, he spitted it out and fell to the ground, grabbing his stomach. "GAH! MY STOMACH!"

"Hey! What's wrong, stupid birdbrain?" asked Mia frantically.

Natsu picked up the Oran Berry he was eating and gasped. "This isn't an Oran Berry! This is an Oren Berry!"

"Sorry, say what?" asked Konan, sounding better already.

"Some berries look alike but they have some effects. Like right now, this is an Oren Berry, and this can damage you if you eat it. Luckily, that's the only effect it has, but you have to be careful about these kinds of berries," explained Natsu.

"Ah man! Then, how are we supposed to know the difference between a real Berry and a fake one?" asked Konan.

"You can't You'll just have to endure the pain for a while. Luckily, there aren't many fake berries out there, so we should be fine."

"Hey! I think I see the stairs!" called Mia, pointing to another area.

"Great! Just one more and we can rescue our client! I'm getting sick of fighting the same enemies over and over again!" sighed Konan in relief.

"Don't worry, how hard can it be?" wondered Natsu as he and his team ran for the stairs to the final floor.

* * *

_Beach Cave B5F _

To the team's eyes, accustomed to the darkness, the room was filled with light bright enough to blind them, and a Pichu stood in the final floor of the dungeon. His face was shaded due to the backlight, but everyone could see he was tied up near a rock.

The moment the Pichu confirmed Konan, Natsu, and Mia's figures, he cried out in an unexpected loud voice, "Hey! Hey!"

"Whoa, is it just me, or did that Pichu just talk in a rough tone? And aren't Pichus suppose to be high-pitched?" asked Konan as he and his team was running towards the Pichu.

"There are mysterious things in this world after all," answered Mia.

Then, as if his voice was mixed with tears, Pichu shouted, "No! Don't come any closer!"

On hearing that, Konan slowed down his pace, startled. However, the warning didn't seem to reach Natsu and Mia's ears as they were rushing straight towards the tied up Pichu.

Natsu noticed Konan had slowed down his pace and asked, "What's wrong, Konan? We're not done yet! We still have to rescue this Pichu and-"

Right at that moment, several meters before the room, in the blind spot on the right side, on the path intersecting the road that the three were running through, an unexpected Pokemon appeared.

The Pokemon yelled, "Dark Pulse!" The Pokemon placed his hands together and created a ball of black and purple circles, then fires the circles as beams of circles towards Mia and Natsu. This attack was so fast, and an advanced one at that. The stronger the Pokemon, the more powerful and faster their moves will be.

"Nooo! Natsu, Mia! Get back!" Konan screamed. It was no use. Even if Konan didn't warn them, the blast would hit both of his teammates, since it looks too powerful and it is fast. At this rate, there was barely any time to try and dodge the attack.

"Kh-!" Suddenly, Mia, who had somehow foresaw the attack, slammed Natsu's head to the ground and even managed to duck to the ground at the same time with tremendous speed. Then, she jumped on top of Natsu, protecting his body with hers.

After the dust cleared, Team Pokepals saw the Pokemon who had attacked them. He is a large dinosaur-like Pokemon with green armor-like hide with spikes covering his entire body.

Mia released Natsu and stood up, offering her hand. "Natsu! Are you alright?"

"Yeah, I'm f-fine," ensured Natsu, now regaining his senses and grabbing Mia's hand and standing in front of Mia, determined to protect his friends. Konan ran in front of both his friends in a fighting position. At that moment, the Pokemon looked straight at the three friends. Chills ran down through their body, as though their hearts were gripped by pure fear.

However, Mia recovered quickly and glared at the Pokemon before asking, "Who are you?"

The Pokemon smirked at the girl's determination not to be afraid and answered, "I am Tyranitar, a high leveled Pokemon. Not only that, but I'm an outlaw as well. If you three don't want to get hurt, I suggest you leave."

"Please! Do what he says! I'll be fine!" cried out the rough voiced Pichu.

Natsu was shaking with fear, his expression frozen. Last time they fought an outlaw, which happened to be Drowzee, he was appeared since it was his first time fighting an outlaw, but he managed to dealt the final blow to Drowzee. However, this was a different case.

Natsu sputtered to his friends, "G-guys! He's right! I-I saw a w-wanted poster of him! H-he's telling the t-truth! W-we have to return to the guild! W-we'll explain the situation, and some stronger team will s-stop him! Come on, g-guys!"

"...Sorry, Natsu. But running away from situations like this just ain't my style," replied Konan coolly.

Natsu and Mia looked at Konan, surprised. The battle crazy, whiny Piplup they knew was calmly taking the situation seriously? Even though he may be couragous, this is crazy! Even a high rank Exploration Team would know the situation and make the right decisions! Both were at a loss.

"So, I'll find us an opening, and at that moment, get to Pichu and then teleport out of here as soon as you can," ordered Konan.

Was this really Konan? Giving out orders so calmly like that? Since when did he act so mature?

"YAAAAAHHHHHHH!" screamed out Konan at the top of his lungs. He charged towards Tyranitar recklessly, while bringing out some Geo Pebbles from his Treasure Bag and hurling them at the large Pokemon. Tyranitar easily blocked the rocks with his arm and prepared to slash Konan with his arm when it was time.

Mia turned to Natsu and said, " Natsu, go retrieve Pichu and get out of here! I'll help out the stupid birdbrain! He can't handle this on his own, so he'll need me!"

"W-what?! B-but I can't just-!"

"Don't worry! This is understandable! Now, I'll try to find you an opening, and you jumped at it! Now, let's go!" With that, Mia charged towards Tyranitar as well while getting out some Iron Spikes.

"Bubblebeam!" cried out Konan, shooting bubbles from his mouth. Tyranitar just blocked with them one arm, smirking.

"Thundershock!" shouted Mia. Though she knew that weak Electric-Type attack would not have much damage against Pokemon like Tyranitar, it would be a small distraction.

_'Amazing...how can Konan and Mia face such dangerous situations like this?' _thought Natsu, amazed and stunned. _'Come to think of it, Mia always had to face situations like this before we joined the guild. And she was always protecting me! Even though I'm the older one and I'm supposed to protect her...' _

"Sandstorm!" shouted Tyranitar. He showed his palm towards the approaching Konan and Mia, and started waving his arm in circles and a sandstorm appeared from his arm and towards Mia and Konan.

Konan screeched to a stop before shouting, "Growl! Growl! Growl!" He opens his mouth before releasing a loud piercing shriek that disorted the air.

Mia also stopped charging and joined Konan by using Growl as well. The sandstorm kept approaching, even when Mia and Konan had used Growl to decrease the move's attack power.

**SLAM! **A red flash. An inpact.

Mia felt herself spinning round and round. First, both she and Konan was thrown to the ground, then crashed into the ceiling on the rebound before falling back to the ground again. Mia fell on her backside, while Konan fell facedown, both their consciousness hazy. Even though they stopped to use Growl so many times, the sandstorm attack was still powerful.

"Huh, I'm surprised you two survived that attack. Your friend over there was right not to join the fight. Heh, he must have been a coward, not helping out his comrades," sneered Tyranitar.

"S-shut your...trap..." said Mia, her teeth gritting in anger as she struggled to stand up.

"Yeah...shut up...Natsu's...not a coward..." agreed Konan as he also tried to stand up, despite his injuries.

"Mia...Konan...please stop! I told you, we should have teleported out of here! Some other team can handle him, but we can't! We're still rookies!" begged Natsu.

"Oh? Rookies? This will make things easier!" said Tyranitar amused, cracking his knuckles.

"Leave...Natsu...and Konan alone!" shouted Mia, now on her feet and her arms wide to protect her friends.

"Oh? And are you going to stop me alone, girl?" asked Tyranitar, being cocky.

"If neccessary, yes!" spat out Mia, panting.

"Heh, as a reward for your determination, I guess I can spare you a bit of pain. Take this, Payback!"

**SLAM**! Tyranitar raised his right arm, and slammed it directly towards Mia without mercy.

"Mia!" cried out Konan and Natsu. Mia was sent flying simultaneously and crashed to the ground facedown.

"Mia! Mia! Say something!" shouted Konan.

"M-MIA!" screamed Natsu.

Mia didn't say anything, but she wasn't dead. It was just that she couldn't speak, or move a single muscle. Blood poured down from her lower lip as she struggled to breath. She thought, _'That attack...Payback is supposed to be a move that doubles damage given to the user and towards their opponent, but me and Konan never dealted any damage towards him! He...he really is worthy of a high ranked criminal!' _

"Why you-!" Konan grunted, charging towards Tyranitar. He pulled out all the Geo Pebbles and Iron Thorns he had in his Treasure Bag and threw them towards Tyranitar, who blocked them. While Tyranitar was distracted, Konan jumped into the air and shouted, "BUBBLEBEAM!"

The barrage of bubbles aimed for Tyranitar, but the outlaw easily dodged the bubbles and yells, "Rock Slide!" He raised both arms into the air, then multiple white rings of energy appeared above Konan and small boulders come out from the ripples of energy. The boulders then fall down and rain down on Konan, causing him to crash to the ground while being surrounded by small boulders.

"GH!" Konan coughed out a bit of blood and tried to remove the boulders on his own, only to find he couldn't move. "R-Run! Natsu! Go get help! We'll be fine!"

But Natsu wasn't listening, for he was frozen with fear. He couldn't believe it. If he ran while his friends were on the verge of death, he would think himself as a coward for running! Instead, Natsu tried to be courageous and scream, "EMBER!"

Natsu opened his mouth and shot bolts of fire towards Tyranitar. He knew it wouldn't have much effect, seeing how Tyranitar is a Rock/Dark Type, and that Fire Types are weak against Rock Types, but still, he had to try, even if it might get himself killed!

When Natsu opened his eyes, he saw Tyranitar right in front of him, completely unscathed. Natsu thought, _'I...I knew it...I knew it wouldn't work...I'm sorry, Konan and Mia...is this...the end...?' _

"You fool," said Tyranitar. "You thought you could stand up to me, despite the fact that you yourself are a Fire Type? Ah well, at least you tried. I'll end you off with a painless death!"

As Tyranitar raised his arm to finish off Natsu, Konan screamed, "DON'T. TOUCH. HIM."

"Huh?" Tyranitar looked behind him to see Konan struggling to move and trying to pry the boulders off him.

"DON'T. TOUCH. HIM." repeated Konan, gritting his teeth while trying to endure the pain.

Then, Tyranitar felt someone grab his leg and saw Mia clutching his leg as tightly as she could. She spoke, "That's...right...Don't you...dare...lay a single finger...on him...!"

"What? You want me to finish you two off first?" taunted Tyranitar. "Well, if that's your wish, so be it!" He kicked Mia off him, and raised both his arms. "I'll give both of you as ainless pain as possible! Hahahahaha!"

"NO, STOP!" cried out Pichu and Natsu. Then, three heroic voices filled the entire floor-

"Shadow Ball!"

"Sweet Scent!"

"Ominous Wind!"

Suddenly, three moves struck Tyranitar from behind, surprisely dealing damage. Tyranitar turned around and roared, "Who did that?! Show Yourself!"

Then, a female voice complained, "Ah, Claire! Why did you have to use Sweet Scent? Couldn't you have used a different move?'

"But, Sweet Scent was the only long ranged move I had, even if it's not an offensive move," answered another female voice, only this one was timid.

"Forget about that for now! We've got an outlaw to deal with!" called out a male voice this time.

"Show yourself!" Tyranitar repeated, getting more irritated by the second.

Just then, Team Pokepals saw a Haunter with a yellow ribbon float through a solid wall, and creep behind Tyranitar. "Curse!"

Tyranitar swiftly turned around and yelled, "Sandstorm!" Very quickly, he waved his arm into circles, and a sandstorm appeared, smashing the Hauinter since he was at close range.

"Gah!" shouted the Haunter in pain after getting hit by the Ground Type move.

Suddenly, Tyranitar placed one knee to the ground while clutching onto his stomach. "Gh-! What did you do to me-?!"

The Haunter chomped on an Oran Berry before answering, "Oh! Curse is a Ghost-Type move that slowly affects the opponent. Even though it'll affect you, it also affects me as well, but only once, though I did suffer some major damage."

"W-why you-!" Tyranitar roared, charging towards the Haunter.

"Ice Beam!" Light blue beams struck Tyranitar's arms, making them frozen in ice.

"W-what the hell?! Wait, Ice Types are weak against Rock Types! Nice try!" Tyranitar easily smashed the ice out of his arms.

"ViceGrip!" shouted the timid voice. Suddenly, a Mawile with a yellow ribbon on her head appeared out of nowhere and grab Tyranitar's head with her pair of huge, black toothy, jaw-like horns that grow from the back of her head.

"Gah! Let go! Let go!" shouted Tyranitar, trying to pry off the Mawile. However, the Mawile held on tight, so it would be difficult for the Tyranitar to make the Mawile let go.

"Hey, Claire! Let go!" ordered a Froslass with a yellow ribbon that appeared out of nowhere.

"Ok, Autumn!" agreed Claire, quickly releasing Tyranitar.

"Finally! Payback!" shouted Tyranitar, aiming for the Mawile named Claire. Claire yelped in pain after Tyranitar smashed her with his fist.

"Icy Wind!" cried out the Froslass named Autumn. She blew sparkling blue snow out of her mouth and towards Tyranitar, who had to cover himself with his spiky looking arms. Team Pokepals were shocked and happy at the same time. Shocked because this unexpected trio team had just walked in and saved their lives, and happy because they were beating the tar out of Tyranitar.

"Gh-!" As soon as Tyranitar thawed out the ice quickly with his strength, he raised his arms and hollered, "Rock Slide!"

Natsu, wanting to help out, warned, "Look out! That's a Rock-Type move coming from the sky! Ice Types are weak against Rock Types!"

"What?!" cried out Autumn. She looked up and saw boulders falling from the sky and towards her. She quickly dodged all of them in time and rushed towards Tyranitar, yelling, "Double Team!" Her body glowed white and multiple copies of herself formed a circle around Tyranitar.

"Tch-! Such a nusiance! Dark Pulse!" Tyranitar placed his hands together and created a ball of black and purple circles. Then, he fires the circles while spinning around, trying to find the real Autumn among the clones of Autumn.

"Claire! Now!" cried the Haunter, charging towards Tyranitar.

"Please leave it to me, Devin!" agreed Claire. She turned to Tyranitar and cried, "Sweet Scent!" Pink powder was released from Claire's jaw-like horns from the back of her head and surrounded Tyranitar.

"W-what is it?! This stupid powder!" shouted Tyranitar, trying to get a clear view. As he was trying to clear the pink powder fog away, Devin the Haunter and Autumn the Froslass appeared in front of him.

"Now!" ordered Devin. "Shadow Ball!" Devin's hands glowed with a blue aura, then a black ball forms in between his hands, and he shoots the ball towards Tyranitar.

"Ice Beam!" cried Autumn. A light blue ball appeared in front of her mouth, and light blue beams are fired from the ball and towards Tyranitar. The two attacks critically hit Tyranitar directly, and finally, defeating him.

"This...can't be..." spoke Tyranitar before fainting. After the Sweet Scent fog disappeared, Team Pokepals saw Tyranitar on the ground, fainted.

"Yahoo! Ow! Ow! Ow!" cheered Konan before he had to go back to enduring his injuries.

"Yes! Ow! Ow! Ow!" said Mia before also groaning in pain.

"Hey, shouldn't we help the injured ones already?" asked Claire timidly.

"Oh! Please, help out my friends! They're more injured than me! Please!" begged Natsu.

"Sure! No problem, champ! We were planning to anyways!" ensured Devin.

"...Hey! What about me!" shouted Pichu.

"Oh! And please help him out too! He's the cilent we had to rescue!" explained Natsu.

"...Him? The Pichu with the rough voice?...Ok." _'Though I don't want to because of his weird voice,' _thought Devin sweatdropping.

* * *

_Back at the guild... _

"...And I specifically told you to be careful from now on! But would you listen? NO!" shouted Chatot, giving a lecture to Team Pokepals.

"...Sorry, but what are we even talking about? And you never told us to be careful!" said Konan.

"We are talking about the fact that you faced a HIGH RANKED criminal on your own! As if taking one yesterday wasn't bad enough, you had to do it again! And this time, you nearly got killed! You're lucky Team Triolet was there, or you would have been dead by now!" lectured Chatot even more.

"Hold on, Chatot! That Tyranitar guy appeared during Team Pokepals mission, so it wasn't technically their fault he appeared. But we all know it was their fault for challenging the outlaw in the first place," explained Autumn.

Konan's jaw dropped and he thought, _'Way to change the situation to a worse one, you evil little witch!' _

As if reading his mind, Autumn thought back with a sinister thought, _'That's what you get for calling me old lady, jerk!' _

"Well, now that that's settled, how about we go eat dinner?" suggested Devin.

"But Chimecho hasn't even called us yet," said Chatot.

Devin held out three fingers. "Three...two...one..."

**DING! DING! **"Everyone! Dinner's ready!" called Chimecho's voice.

Everyone was surprised at Devin's prediction. Konan's expression changed from shock to excitment and he squealed, "Teach me how to do that! How did you do that?"

Devin laughed. "I'm psychic!"

"No you aren't! You just checked to see when dinner is ready by floating through the ground for a second, dumbo!" revealed Autumn.

"Hey! A magician never reveals his secrets!" complained Devin. "And no one reveals a magician's secrets."

"This one did," spoke Mia. Then, everyone laughed.

* * *

_During dinnertime... _

"Um...Konan? How exactly did we get into this mess?" asked Natsu nervously. He, Konan, and Mia were on on side of a short table Chimecho brought out, and the other side happened to be Corphish, Chimecho, and Loudred. The rest of the guild members were observing in a huge crowd, even Wigglytuff and Chatot.

"Eh? Well, you see," Konan started to explain. "Well, we were searching for your red scarf during dinnertime and we finally found it when Loudred was wiping it with his mouth. Then, Mia tried to get the red scarf back from Loudred only to end up in an argument that got everyone's attention. Then, stepping into the scene, an ally of justice, obviously me, appeared in a flash and convinced them to settel the issue by having an arm-wrestling contest!"

"What do you mean, ally of justice?" asked Mia, a little annoyed.

"Well, it's all good! You don't like settling things with violence, and I don't either!" ensured Konan. "Besides, it'll be fun."

_'But you always fight with violence! And when the last time you didn't settle things with violence?' _thought Mia.

"But if we lose, Loudred will take my Power Scarf, and it's hard to find another one of those these days!" complained Natsu.

"If that happens, couldn't you buy another Power Scarf?" asked Konan.

"He just told you, Konan, that it's hard to find one these days!" reminded Mia.

"Well, don't worry, Natsu!" ensured Konan. "If you and I win, it's two-to-one. Three if Mia also wins, which we know she will. Then, it's over."

"Round one is starting! Natsu vs Corphish!" announced Chatot, holding up a sign that says, "Round One! Also, no use of Moves shall be permitted!" He thought, _'And this is only for the Guildmaster, since he would probably brawl if this didn't happen! Damn you, Konan for suggesting such a thing!' _

As Natsu and Corphish were about to faceoff in the arm wrestling match, Corphish warned, "Just so you know, I'm not going to go easy on you."

"Please be gentle with me!" begged Natsu with the sweetest voice he could say. "As you can see, I'm a very fragile boy!"

"Get set!" shouted Chatot as the referee.

"Oh, that's right. Corphish, did you know?" asked Natsu, bringing Corphish's attention.

"What?"

Natsu suddenly had a creepy grin on his face as he whispered, "This i just between you and me, but..." As Natsu was whispering something secretive, Corphish's face suddenly grew paler and paler with every word Natsu was saying to him.

"Ready...fight!"

**THUD. **Natsu easily beat the pale Corphish without even using his strength. Everyone was just stunned.

"Uh...winner!" Chatot cried, holding up Natsu's arm in the air, claiming him as the winner. Some of the guild members, mostly Wigglytuff, applauded, while others thought the same thing, _'What did Natsu do to that poor Corphish?'_

As soon as Natsu walked back to his team, Konan asked, "Hey, what did you do?"

Natsu let out a cheerful smile and said, "Oh, nothing!~"

"Round 2!" announced Chatot, holding up a sign that said, "Round 2!"

_'Well, I'm up against a girl,' _thought Konan as he was facing Chimecho. _'But why did it had to be sweet innocent Chimecho of all people? Well, at least it won't hurt her much.' _

"Konan," called Chimecho's sweet voice. "Do your best!~"

_'C-chimecho...' _thought Konan, touched by her words. _'Ah! I can't do this! I can't harm Chimecho, even if it's for the stupid scarf! Hold on! It's only one time! Ok, Konan! You need to man up and-' _

"Fight!" said Chatot. **THUD. **While Konan was distracted, Chimecho had taken advantage to that and easily won. "The winner!" called Chatot, pointing to Chimecho happily, aking everyone cheer and call out Chimecho's name.

Konan however, was in a corner, depressed because he LOST to a girl and the loser had to be him. Even Natsu was feeling sorry for him.

"Ahahahahaha! Is that all you got, stupid birdbrain!" taunted Mia, one leg on top of a chair. "But don't worry, for I'll make up for stupid birdbrain's carelessness!"

"A-ack! What do we do now?!" asked Natsu, frantically shaking Konan's shoulders back and forth. "I never thought you would lose, and I have no idea for Mia!"

When Loudred sat down in front of Mia, he warned, "Let me make this clear, I don't hold back for girls like you."

"Alright then," said Mia, amused and already crossing her arms. "If you want to forfeit, now's your chance, Mr. Loudmouth."

"WHAT?! Who are you calling LOUDMOUTH?!" yelled Loudred, slamming his hand onto the table.

"If you don't like Loudmouth," started Mia. "Then, how about...Big mouth? Hippo? Mud at the bottom of my foot?" Everyone's face started to grow pale. No one had ever stood up to LOUDRED, of all people! Well, except for Wigglytuff, but nobody messes with Loudred! Not even Chatot!

"W-why you-!" shouted Loudred, getting more and more angry.

"Ack! Now she's provoking him! Don't you have a plan?!" asked Natsu, frantically.

"Oh, wait! This is stupid mouse we're talking about!" sighed Konan in relief. "So, it shouldn't be a problem, even with Loudred as her opponent!"

"Final Round!" called Chatot. As Loudred and Mia positioned themselves for the final round of armwrestling, Chatot announced, "Ready...FIGHT!"

"Are you regreting of having me as your opponent, shoe dirt?!" taunted Mia with an evil look in her eyes.

"Oohh!" everyone wondered out loud, curious at what the outcome for the final round would be.

As Mia was struggling to force Loudred's hand to the side, and even planning to use an Electric Type attack, she realized something. _'Oh no! I totally forgot that we can't use our moves here!' _

As if reading Mia's mind, Natsu and Konan freaked out and shouted in unison, "Gah! She really has no plan!"

Loudred let out an evil grin. "Where did all that spirit go, huh? I warned you that I wasn't going to hold back, so don't come crying if I break your arm!"

As Loudred was able to counterattack, Mia angrily kicked something out of frustration. However, she never expected to kick the spot which men are forbidden to be kicked at. That's right, Mia kicked the spot...between Loudred's legs.

"Gh-!" As Loudred tried his best not to squeal out, Mia took this chance, and with all of her strength, she forced Loudred's arm down to the side, thus making her the winner. Everyone was just shocked that Mia was not only able to taunt Loudred, but beat him as well.

"W-winner!" cried out Chatot, holding out Mia's arm up to the air, making everyone applaud for her.

"Yay! I did it! I did it!" cheered Mia, happily jumping up and down.

Natsu and Konan were the only ones who knew how Mia truly won, and were still gawking. Natsu turned to Konan and asked, "Um...Konan? Should we tell-"

"Don't. Say it. It was just to get your scarf back," said Konan. Thus, Konan, Natsu, and Mia were the only ones who knew how Mia won, and vowed never to do an arm wrestling contest again, which most of the guild members including Chatot firmly agreed.

* * *

**Hope: Whew! Finally done! Merry Christmas everyone! I'll start a new chapter soon, but I wanna rest now! Anyways, read and review! See ya!**


	6. The Gatekeepers! Failed!

**Hope: Hey guys! I'm back, and this time, with a funny chapter!**

**Konan: Hey! How come we got our butts kicked last chapter?**

**Natsu: Because we weren't strong enough!**

**Hope: Look, less talking, more continuing onto the chapter! One of you do the disclaimer!**

**Mia: Mage of Hope does not own Pokemon, only the Pokemon Company does. Now, let's continue!**

**Hope: Someone's in a good mood today! Let the chapter continue! **

* * *

"UP AND AT 'EM! IT'S MORNING!"

"Uh...still so sleepy..." groaned Konan, wiping his eyes.

As soon as Mia got out of bed, Loudred quickly backed away a little. "What is it, Loudred?" asked Mia.

"I think it was because of last night, with the armwrestling contest," said Natsu.

"Oh, that. Come on, Loudred! So it was just one loss, so what?" told Mia.

"No, it's not that, it's just that I don't want you to hit me in that 'spot' again," cringed Loudred.

_'That spot? Oh, that one,' _thought Team Pokepals, sweatdropping.

"A-anyways, we should get going," informed Loudred, eagered to go to the briefing room.

"...AND THREE! SMILES GO FOR MILES!" shouted everyone, doing the daily morning routine.

"Ok, Pokemon!~ Time to go to work!~" cheered Chatot.

"HOORAY!"

As soon as everyone left, Team Pokepals heard Loudred's voice call out for them. "HEY! You three!" Loudred rushed towards them and pleaded, "We need your help today!" Team Pokepals followed Loudred towards a small hole and met up with Diglett. "Diglett, I brought them!" said Loudred to Diglett.

"Thank you, Loudred," thanked Diglett politely.

"Okay, what do you need us for?" asked Konan.

"You two are doing sentry duty today!" revealed Loudred.

"Sentry duty?" echoed the three friends in unison.

"Sorry, normally I'm the one doing sentry duty," apologized Diglett. "But today, dad gave me the job of updating the boards. That's why I can't do my normal duty for now. It would be great if someone did my job for me. And that's why you're here. Please do a good job for me. Bye!" With that, Diglett was gone.

_'Does he mean that Dugtrio guy?' _thought Konan.

_'What in the world could Dugtrio be doing that he can't man his own post and had to pin it on his own son?' _thought Mia.

_'I hope we do a good job today,' _thought Natsu.

"And that's THAT," said Loudred.

"Yeah, not to be rude or anything, but how are we involved in this?" asked Konan.

"Shut your YAP!" yelled Loudred, forcing Team Pokepals to cover their ears. "NO MORE COMPLAINING! GO DO YOUR DUTY!"

"Yeah, and what are we supposed to do?" asked Konan.

Loudred calmed down and explained, "Climb down this hole and stand guard! You're on sentry duty! Since we can't have suspicious Pokemon in the guild, we station a sentry below the guild entrance to evaluate Pokemon visitors. When you first came, you guys had your footprints evaluated, right?"

"Our footprints?...Oh yeah! That's right!" said Mia, remembering.

"But you and Diglett couldn't identify Konan's footprint! How's that different?" asked Natsu.

"S-shut up!" shotued Loudred, embarrassed. "Anyways, the tunnel down there leads to the sentry post. So bascially, you climb down the hole, and then you look at the hole above you, inspect the footprints of visitors, identify them, and then inform me. Then, I decide if the Pokemon is suspicious or not and then I open the gate if I make my decision. So, you guys are pretty much like the gatekeepers. All right? Understood?"

"That's so easy! Not a big deal!" grinned Konan.

"Oh really? You do realize that you have to inspect A LOT of Pokemon today, and a LOT of Pokemon visit the guild every day," wanred Loudred. "Oh, and take this."

Loudred tossed Konan a large book, and when he caught it, it was so heavy, it made the Piplup wobble a bit before falling down straight into the hole with the book in his arms. "AAAAAAHHHHH! OOF!"

"Konan! Are you alright?" asked Natsu, worried.

"Stupid birdbrain!...Are you dead?" called Mia.

"Ow...Yes, I'm fine! And no, I'm not dead, stupid mouse!" called back Konan. "Loudred, what the hell is this book?"

"You'll need it for inspecting the Pokemon's footprints! There's a whole list of them in that book! You'll have to memorize it!" shouted Loudred.

"Why?! This is the only time we'll help you, so why?" asked Konan.

"Oh, didn't I tell you? You'll be doing sentry duty more than once, you know!" ensured Loudred.

"Wait, what?" called Konan.

"Wait, what?" asked Natsu and Mia, turning to Loudred.

"If you do a good job today, you'll receive a ton of good rewards from Chatot!" said Loudred.

"Natsu," ordered Mia, nodding to him. Natsu nodded back in agreement and both of them climbed down the hole using the vines.

"About time you got here!" said Konan, who was waiting for them at the bottom of the hole.

"Hey, where's the book?" asked Mia.

"I'm sitting on it," said Konan, pointing to where he was sitting. "Even though it's all heavy, it makes a good seat.

"HEY! That book is not used for a CUSHION! Now, get back to work!" shouted Loudred, who overheard their conversation.

"Alright! Jeez!"

A little while later, Team Pokepals were trying to make their way towards the spot where Loudred told them to go, but they only had one light, and that was the fire on Natsu's butt.

"Hey! Quit pushing, stupid mouse!"

"I'm pushing? What about you? You keep shoving me, stupid birdbrain!"

"Cause you're in the way, that's what! Man, if only we had more fire! Natsu, can't you produce more flames?"

"Sorry, Konan. I can't use any Fire-Type moves since I might accidentally burn someone."

"Hmm...we need a stick or something-Ah! I know! We can use the book!"

"N-no, Konan! We can't! We need that to identify the footprints!"

"Natsu's right, stupid birdbrain! Gimme that!"

"Jeez! You didn't have to yank the book out of my hands!"

"Well, you were going to use it as fire! By the way, why not use a stick?"

"...Oh." Konan picked up a stick and placed it a bit next to the fire on Natsu's butt.

"Great! We have fire!" exclaimed Natsu. "Maybe this time, we'll find our way! We can't get lost this time!"

That's when Natsu decided to stop jinxing whenever he can, because Team Pokepals kept on going around in circles, ending up in dead ends, and Konan kept dropping the stick, resulting in the fire going out and Konan and Mia arguing which way to go, until they realize they had to climb up again.

About one hour later, they heard Loudred's voice call call out, "HEY! Are you there yet?"

"Yeah! We just got here! Next time, give us directions or at least give us a map!" called back Konan, angrily.

"What are you, STUPID?! You just climb down, walk around a bit, climb up, climb up again, and then BOOM! You're at that spot I told you!" shouted Loudred.

"Should have told us eariler then!" shouted back Konan.

"Anyways, Pokemon visitors will stop onto the grate above the sentry post!" explained Loudred. "Identify them by footprint, then inform me, got it?!"

"Yes! Understood!" said Natsu.

"GOOD! Let's get started!"

Right at that moment, Team Pokepals saw some footprints on top of the grate above. Just when the footprints of the Pokemon above was about to proceed, Konan yelled, "STOP! STOP! STOP! YEAH, YOU UP THERE! STOP!"

The Pokemon above got scared and looked around. "W-who said that?"

"STOP RIGHT THERE, BUSTER!" Konan shouted with all of his might. "FREEZE!"

The Pokemon however, got frightened and screamed, "I'M OUTTA HERE!" So, he turned around and ran.

Mia swatted Konan across the head "What did you do that for, stupid birdbrain? You just made our first visitor run away!"

"I didn't know that would happen! I didn't think someone shouting from below would make someone else run away! Who does that anyway, besides the guy who ran off?" wondered Konan.

"Um...that would be me," spoke up Natsu timidly.

"WHAT in the world are you three DOING?!" hollered Loudred's voice. "You just made your first visitor run away!"

_'That's exactly what I said,' _thought Mia sweatdropping.

"Well, excuse me! Cut us some slack! This is our first time, you know! I bet other Exploration teams did better than us the first couple of times they did this!" argued Konan.

"...Actually, you guys are the first," revealed Loudred.

"WHAT?! Ugh, you've got to be joking! Then, can you at least tell us how to identify the visitors without scaring them away?" asked Konan.

"You just say something like, 'Pokemon detected! Pokemon detected!' Or something other than that! I don't know! Diglett always says that!" answered Loudred.

"...Yeah. Nice advice!" shouted Konan sarcastically.

"Here's the next one!" shouted Mia, pointing up.

"Alright! Pokemon detected! Pokemon detected!" shouted Konan, though not as loud as he did before. He thought, _'Please don't run away!' _

Luckily, the Pokemon above didn't, and Loudred asked, "Whose footprints?! Whose footprints?!"

"Um...ah...where's that stinking book when you need it?!" said Konan to himself as he searched for the book Loudred gave him.

"Natsu! Here!" informed Mia, handing the book to Natsu.

"Hey! How come you gave the book to him?" asked Konan, complaining a bit.

"Because Natsu is a fast reader and can memorize things quickly," explained Mia.

"Don't worry! Leave the footprint identifying to me! I'll tell you guys!" ensured Natsu.

"Alright then!" agreed Konan.

As Natsu was reading and memorizing the footprints in the book as fast as he could, Konan noticed the Pokemon above was getting impatient and that it was walking away.

"HEY!" yelled Konan. "GET BACK HERE! YOU CAN'T JUST WALK AWAY! HEY! COME BACK!"

Upon hearing Konan's voice, the Pokemon jumped and ran away. Konan angrily said to himself, "That Pokemon ran away! How dare he/she run away?!"

Mia hit Konan across the head again. "That's because you yelled at that Pokemon!"

"HEY! What the hell is going on down there?!" yelled Loudred's voice. "You made another Pokemon run away!"

"Hey! We're trying our best here, Loudred! Just be patient!" shouted Mia.

"Natsu! Aren't you done reading that book?" asked Konan, impatient.

"I'm trying! I'm trying!" said Natsu, frantically.

"Hey! Don't rush Natsu! He's trying his best!" defended Mia.

"What about you? I can see you're not doing anything!" shouted Konan, pointing at the Pikachu.

"I can do a far more better job than you!" said Mia. "Just watch! The next one's mine!"

"Speaking of which, here's the next one!" said Konan, pointing up.

"Pokemon detected! Pokemon detected!" shouted Mia, not too loudly though.

"WHICH FOOTPRINTS? WHICH FOOTPRINTS?!" asked Loudred.

"Natsu? Which footprints are they?" asked Mia.

Natsu looked up, and glanced back at the book. "Um...ah...Oh! A Piplup!"

"If that was a Piplup, I would have noticed, seeing how I'm one myself," said Konan, a bit annoyed. "Besides, the Pokemon up there has four footprints!"

"WHICH FOOTPRINTS?! WHICH FOOTPRINTS?!"

"Um...ah...Bulbasaur! It has to be Bulbasaur's!" said Natsu.

"...Nope! You got it wrong! Get it right next time!" shouted Loudred.

"Next time?! We can just guess it right now!" said Konan. Then, he noticed the footprints going away and shouted, "That Pokemon's going away again! What is wrong with impatient Pokemon these days! They have to learn to be patient!"

"Unlike you," muttered Mia.

"What was that?!"

"Guys! The next one! And I'm sure I know what this footprint is this time!" said Natsu. "It's a Meowth! It has to be!"

"Alright then!" said Konan. "Pokemon detected! Pokemon detected!"

"WHOSE FOOTPRINTS?! WHOSE FOOTPRINTS?!"

"The footprints are Meowth! The footprints are Meowth!"

"...Nope! You got it wrong!"

"What?!" Team Pokepals exclaimed.

"It turned out to be a Persian, you FOOLS! Get it right next time!" With that being said, the Persian walked away.

"Why is it that whenever we guessed something wrong, the Pokemon always walks away?!" shouted Konan, irritated.

"I think we only get one guess," suggested Natsu. still reading the book.

"But, at least this time, you were almost right, Natsu! Persian is the evolved form of Persian!" informed Mia.

"Yeah, almost," muttered Konan.

"Not helping, stupid birdbrain!" Mia shouted before looking up. "Pokemon detected! Pokemon detected!"

"WHOSE FOOTPRINTS?! WHOSE FOOTPRINTS?!"

"Um...I'm sure this time, it has to be...Skarmory's!" said Natsu.

"Skarmory's footprints! Skarmory's footprints! And we better not be wrong this time!" yelled Konan.

"...Nope! You got it wrong again!"

"WHAT?! Why?!" Now, Konan turned to Natsu and grabbed him by the collar of his red scarf. "Why?!"

"Hey! Let Natsu go now!" warned Mia.

"This time, it's a Pidgey! Get it right next time, you FOOLS!" yelled Loudred.

The rest of the day...ended up in a disaster. This was because Natsu kept getting a lot of Pokemon footprints wrong, but got their type right. Once, Natsu thought there was a Ditto's footprint above, then Konan, thinking that Natsu was wrong, tried to guess another Pokemon, only to realize it was a Ditto's footprint. Luckily, they managed to get a few Pokemon right.

Later, when sentry duty was done, Chatot came up to Team Pokepals and Loudred and replied, "You've done an honest day's work.~ Let me review your sentry-duty's results."

_'Please be good results. Please be good results!' _thought everyone.

Chatot got out a piece of paper and looked over it before turning back to everyone. "Your results were...absolutely dreadful!"

Konan and Loudred's jaws fell to the ground, while Mia shook her head and Natsu fell into depression as he looked into the ground sadly. _'Should have seen that coming,' _thought Mia and Natsu.

_'D-dreadful?! It can't be!' _thought Loudred and Konan.

"You failed so many times!" scolded Chatot. "You slackers! What did you do, goof off?!"

"N-no!" said Natsu, trying to explain. "This was our first time and-"

"Grrr...!" Loudred growled. Then, he turned to Team Pokepals with an angry look on his face and said, "You three got SO many wrong...AND I even got in TROUBLE for it!"

The last part Loudred screamed out made everyone in the guild cover their ears. "H-hush!" scolded Chatot angrily. "Don't you dare blame it on anyone else! Sentry duty is a cooperative job, isn't it?" Then, he turned to Team Pokepals and announced, "Anyways, this job was a fiasco, no doubt about it! As punishment, there shall be no reward, and no dinner either!"

Everyone was shocked. Dinner was their favorite activity every day! Without dinner, well...you're going to starve!

"WHAT?!" everyone yelled.

"It's been decided!" said Chatot. "No objections!"

Later that night, when everyone was eating dinner, Team Pokepals and Loudred were forced to watch painfully. Today, Chimecho had cooked her favorite foods, which was everyone's favorite food too. Team Pokepals and Loudred were looking forward to trying it, but they messed up, so as a result, there would be no dinner for them. Ah well, there was always next time.

Natsu's stomach growled. "Ugh...so hungry..."

Loudred turned around, obviously in a bad mood. "Grrr...!"

"Um...please don't glare at us," begged Natsu.

"I...agree with Natsu for once," agreed Konan, his tone low.

_'I'm guessing this is Loudred's way of revenge for me kicking his butt at armwrestling,' _thought Mia.

When dinner was finished, Loudred escorted Team Pokepals back to their room, only because he was still angry at them. He was still growling and fuming with anger as he glared at them in their room.

Team Pokepals sweatdropped, and Natsu asked, "Um...Loudred? I know you're still mad, but can't you just let it go? I mean, you do have the right to be angry but-"

"Natsu, don't worry. Let me handle this," ensured Konan.

As Konan was walking towards Loudred, Mia said, "...Konan's gonna get his butt whipped. Natsu, cover your ears with the pillow."

"...Ok," agreed Natsu getting out his pillow.

When Konan approached Loudred, he sighed. "You know, I was planning on eating this, but seeing how you're still mad at us, and we can't have that...here!" Konan handed Loudred the biggest Apple anyone's ever seen.

Loudred's eyes were as wide as dinner plates, and so were Natsu and Mia, only theirs weren't as big as Loudred. Mia asked, "Um...Where did you get that?"

"I stoled it," grinned Konan.

"What?! Where?!" everyone yelled.

"During dinnertime. Why? Why are you all so freaked out?"

Everyone sighed in relief and thought, _'Whew, I actually thought he stoled it from somewhere else. Now that would make him a criminal.' _

"Anyways, accept this as an apology gift, okay?" asked Konan cheerfully.

"...YOU think that giviing me a Big Apple will make me FORGIVE you GUYS?" asked Loudred in a deep voice.

"Um...yeah?"

_'Konan's so gonna get it,' _thought Mia and Natsu, already pulling their pillows to their ears.

"...THIS IS THE MOST AMAZING APOLOGY GIFT ANYONE'S EVER GAVE ME! THANK YOU!" sniffed Loudred with tears in his eyes as he hugged Konan.

"...What?" said both Natsu and Mia in unison.

"Apology accepted! Goodnight guys!" said Loudred, with his Big Apple.

"Goodnight! Don't get caught by Chatot!" called back Konan cheerfully.

"...How did you do that? Just how did you do that?" asked Mia, stunned.

"Huh? Well, I heard Big Apples are really popular these days and all," answered Konan. "Man, Chatot is such an idiot. He didn't even think twice about looking into our bags to see if we had food!"

"Oh...why didn't we think of that?" wondered Natsu outloud. And so, Team Pokepals had a small and quiet feast with the Gummis and Apples they had in their own Treasure Bags before going to sleep, satisfied.

* * *

**Hope: Whew! Finally done! And in one day too! This chapter was fun to make!**

**Konan: Are you kidding? Natsu totally screwed things up!**

**Mia: Hey! It's not Natsu's fault!**

**Hope: Anyways, next chapter, there will be more fighting, probably. But I assure you, there would be any sentry duty next chapter! Have a good day and see you!**


	7. The waterfall Expedition

**Hope: Hey guys! Sorry I'm la-**

**Konan: AGAIN! YOU'RE LATE AGAIN! WHEN'S THE LAST FREAKIN' TIME YOU UPDATED?!**

**Hope: Cool down, Konan! Don't make me use force! Anyways, you know damn well why it took me so long! It was all because of my schoolwork and updating other fics!**

**Konan: Not a good reason!**

**Hope: Not a good-OF COURSE IT'S A DAMN GOOD REASON YOU IDIOT!**

**Natsu: Um...guys? We shouldn't keep the viewers waiting.**

**Hope: Oh! Sorry! Could you do the disclaimer, Natsu?**

**Natsu: Ok. Mage of Hope doesn't not own Pokemon, only the Pokemon Company does.**

**Hope: Thanks Natsu! See, Konan? Why can't you be more like Natsu?**

**Natsu: *grumbles* **

* * *

"UP AND AT 'EM! IT'S M-GAH!" Loudred suddenly got a mouthful of a pillow due to a certain short-tempered Piplup.

"*mumble* *mumble* Strike...you're out..." mumbled Konan in his sleep, tossing and turning, and fully unaware that he threw his pillow at Loudred.

Natsu yawned and rubbed his eyes before seeing Loudred choking and trying to get the pillow out of his mouth. "A-ack! Loudred! Are you ok?!" cried Natsu, now fully awake and trying to pull the pillow out of Loudred's mouth.

"*yawn* What's going on-LOUDRED?!" squealed Mia. "Oh man, not this again!"

About a few days ago, Konan had caused this incident unconsciously but only in a different matter. Now, he's done it again and this time, LOUDRED WAS LITERALLY DYING!"

"Gak pe! Ah Litally daing!" (Translation: Help me! I'm literally dying!) said Loudred. Then, Mia went behind Loudred, placed her arms around him, and started pushing his stomach back and forth, until finally, the pillow came out, drenched with saliva.

"Whew...thanks! You saved me!" thanked Loudred, gasping.

"*yawn* Man! That was some good sleep!" said Konan, stretching his arms. Then, he looked around and asked, "So what happened here? Um...Mia, why are your arms around Loudred from behind? Loudred, why do you look like you're ready to kill someone? Mia, Natsu, why are you covering your ears with pillows? Why is there a saliva-covered pillow on the ground? Loudred...why are you coming this way...? Are...are you carrying a MALLET?! AAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH !"

* * *

Meanwhile, the Kecleon brothers, renamed Gemi and Mini, who owned the Kecleon shop were enjoying their morning tea for the morning.

"So, dear brother," started Gemi the green Kecleon while sipping his morning tea.

"Yes, dear brother?" asked Mini the purple Kecleon, also sipping his morning tea.

"Later, how about we go take our morning jog at the beach and-"

"AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH !"

"Brother Gemi! Do you hear that?" asked Mini startled.

"I've felt that!"

* * *

Meanwhile, a mysterious figure that looked like a Grass-Type was wandering around in some woods and muttered, "I've got to find another Time Gear, quickly! There's no time to waste! Every second counts! For all the Pokemon in the future! For all the Pokemon in this past! And, for my dearest best friend-"

"AAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH !"

"...What is that ridiculous noise?"

* * *

"Squawk! I cannot believe Loudred and Team Pokepals! They're late, AGAIN!" squeaked Chatot, angrily. "They're lucky the Guildmaster's still sleeping, or else it would be chaotic already!"

"AAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

That scream was loud enough to make all of the guild members jump in surprise. After the scream ended, they were all thinking of the same thing, _'...What the heck is that?' _

Then, Loudred, and Team Pokepals finally arrived at the briefing room, but something was different. First, after seeing the angry look on Loudred's face, everone decided not to mess with him today, and second, Konan had a huge BUMP on his head that looked like it was caused by a mallet. Wait a minute...why did Loudred have a mallet in his hands?

Pretty much everyone figured out what had happened and kept silent. They felt bad for Konan, and his team members. Then, Wigglytuff came out of his chambers and then Chatot said, "A-anyways! Everyone! Our morning routine!"

"...AND THREE! SMILES GO FOR MILES!" everyone said, finally finishing the usual routine.

"Ahem! Everyone, I have an important announcement to make!" announced Chatot, clearing his throat. "Far to the northeast, then farther into its outermost reaches, there lies a forest called Treeshroud Forest. In Treeshroud Forest, time has stopped."

"What?!" most of the guild members shouted, shocked.

"What did you say?!" squealed Sunflora.

"Hey, hey, hey! You're saying time stopped?" wondered Corphish.

"Does that mean that one of those...you know...Natsu, what did you say they were? Those thingies that protect time and whatnot?" questioned Konan, trying to remember.

"They're called Time Gears," answered Natsu.

"Yeah! Time Gears! So, there's one in Treeshroud Forest?"

"Yes, that's correct," said Chatot. "Time has come to a standstill in Treeshroud Forest. The wind has stopped, the clouds are motionless, and even dew drops from the leaves have stopped completely."

As Chatot explained, every guild member were whispering and muttering to each other like, "Time has really stopped?!" or "Has the unthinkable really happened?!"

"Yes, there's no question about it," said Chatot. "Why has time stopped in Treeshroud Forest? That's because, the Time Gear in that forest...was stolen!"

After hearing that, everyone was shocked once more and their mutters grew louder. Everyone was saying the same thing, like, "The Time Gear was stolen?!" or "Who could have done such a thing?!"

"Quiet, everyone!" called Chatot, trying to get everyone's attention. After everyone had finally calmed down and listened to Chatot, the bird Pokemon continued, "Officer Magnezone has already started an investigation. It's hard to believe that anyone would take a Time Gear, I know. But if one Time Gear was stolen, the others might be in danger. Officer Magnezone asked to be notified immediantly if we spotted any suspicious characters. That is all. Alright, with that aside, let's get to work, everyone!"

"HOORAY!" everyone cheered before going to do their work, except for Team Pokepals.

As Team Pokepals were also about to leave, Chatot called, "Hold on, you three. Come here for a moment." After obeying his orders, Chatot explained, "First, I won't even question what the heck happened this morning with you and Loudred, and second, you three have become quite good at your work...besides yesterday. Anyways, I was quite impressed with your capture with Drowzee, though you never took the request in the first place."

"Hey, question!" piped up Konan, raising his hand. "So, let what if Drowzee stoled the Time Gear? He's already a criminal, so it would make perfect sense!"

Everyone looked at Konan like he was stupid. "SQUAWK! Are you stupid, nimwit?!" shouted Chatot. "The Pokemon Police has been keeping a closer look on Drowzee ever since he's been arrested, and there's no way he could have gotten out of their security system! Even if he somehow had, he would have wanted posters already!"

"Geez! No need to yell that loud then!" complained Konan. "Ok, then what about that other criminal that beat the crap out of us a few days ago? I think his name was Tyranitar or something..."

"Once again, you are an idiot!" shouted Chatot. "The Pokemon Police has been keeping a close eye on him, even closer than Drowzee, since he's a famous criminal!"

"Oh. Then I'm out of leads."

"What made you think one of those two could be the one who stoled the Time Gear?!"

"I dunno. Mostly because they're criminals and all."

If Chatot wanted to, he would have facepalmmed, but he had important things to discuss! "Anyways! You three will be finally assigned a mission worthy of a proper exploration team!"

"Really?!" exclaimed Natsu happily.

"Awesome!" cheered Konan.

"That's so great, guys!" said Mia.

"Now, open your Wonder Maps," ordered Chatot. After they did, he continued, "Treasure Town is here." He pointed at what looks like a small town. "And...here's what we would like you to investigate." Now, Chatot pointed to a small picture of a waterfall. "It may look like an ordinary waterfall, but we've received reports that the waterfall may have contained a secret! We want you three to investigate that waterfall."

"Alright!" said both Konan and Mia in unison. However, Natsu started shaking strangely, catching everyone's attention.

"Hmm? What's wrong, Natsu? You're shivering," asked Chatot. Then, some tears came out of Natsu's eyes and he started to sniff.

"Ack! Are you alright, Natsu?!" exclaimed Mia, all worried.

_'She so likes him,' _thought Konan.

"Yes, I'm ok," ensured Natsu. "It's just...this will be the first time we actually do a real job as an exploration team. And I'm feeling a bit worked up." Then, he turned to his two teamates and encouraged, "Oh! I feel like I'm going to burst from excitement anytime, guys! So, let's do our best!"

"Yeah," agreed Mia.

"Of course! That's what Team Pokepals, the Explorers of Awesomeness and Determination and Intelligence, is all about!"

"That Explorer's part is a bit too long," said Mia.

"Why not change it to, 'Team Pokepals, the Explorers of A.D.I,' suggested Natsu.

"That's cool," agreed Konan. "Now, let's go to Treasure Town to prepare! Maybe the Link Shop's open today!"

* * *

"NOOOO! THE LINK SHOP'S NOT OPEN TODAY!"

"Stupid birdbrain, did you forget? Electivire's on vacation, remember?" reminded Mia, annoyed as she and a worried Natsu were watching Konan cry his eyes out when he saw that the Link Shop was still closed.

"Um...Konan? You're attracting too much attention," spoke Natsu.

"WAAAAAAA!"

"Birdbrain, if you don't shut up right now, I'll go get the mallet that Loudred used on you eariler," threatned Mia with a michevious grin on her face.

"That's cold, stupid mouse," said Konan, somhow stopping his crying. "And that mallet hurts like hell!"

"Then, I suggest we go," said Mia.

"Fine," said Konan, walking towards the Kecleon Shop.

"Welcome, friends!" echoed both Kecleon brothers. "What would you like?"

"Hmm...let's see what you have in stock today..." muttered Konan, checking through the list.

"Oh! Oh! We have something interesting to tell you!" announced Gemi, the green Kecleon.

"You're giving us another free Link Box?!" exclaimed Konan excitedly.

"...No," said Mini, the purple Kecleon. "Anyways, this morning, the most ironic thing happened! While me and my brother were enjoying our morning tea, we heard a scream that shot out of nowhere! How ironic, isn't it? And it seems to have come to the guild! But nothing bad seems to have happened, right?"

Team Pokepals looked at each other in shock. They knew where that scream was from and who screamed. Deciding not to tell the brothers in order to avoid them getting worried and avoid spreading weird rumors, Mia said, "Sorry, we have no idea what you're talking about. We didn't hear anything!"

"Is that so?" wondered Gemi suspiciously. "Well, we must have misheard something! Now, what would you like to buy?"

After buying some items necessary for their exploration, Konan requested, "Hey! I heard that there's some weird cliff that looks like a Pokemon right here in Treasure Town! Can we spare some time and go look? PLEASE?"

Even without Konan's use of the puppy dog eyes, Natsu agreed. "Ok. Besides, it's not that far from here. Mia?"

Mia shrugged. "Heck, why not? It's been a while since we've been there!"

When Natsu finally escorted Konan and Mia to the place Konan wanted to go, which was named, "Sharpedo Bluff," they saw someone they did not expect to see.

It was Dugtrio.

Natsu, worried that Dugtrio might somehow slip and fall into the sea seeing how he's a Ground-Type, tried to call out, "Please be ca-"

**SWOOSH! **Konan grabbed Natsu's head and forced him down while hiding in some large bushes. "Shh! Do you want him to hear us?" hissed Konan.

"Stupid birdbrain! If you wanted him to be quiet, don't just force him like that!" whispered Mia.

"W-what's going on?" asked Natsu.

"We want to see what the hell Dugtrio's up to! I've heard rumors that he's often missing out his work! And maybe here's why!" said Konan. "Now, shh! What's he saying?"

"...The sea...is so vast," said Dugtrio.

"...What?" echoed both Mia and Konan, dumbfounded.

"We wish that we were like the sea before us! Expansive! Deep of heart! O sea, hear me!" called out Dugtrio as if he was in a play. "O sea, teach me! O sea, understand me!"

"Ok, Dugtrio! What the hell are you doing?" asked Konan, confronting the Ground-type and coming out from his hiding spot.

"O sea-what?!" Dugtrio then turned around, and saw himself being contronted by Konan, Mia, and Natsu. "YOU THREE?! What are you doing here?!"

"That's what we're going to ask! What are you doing here and not working?" asked Mia.

"W-well...um...*sigh* We suppose we must tell you," sighed Dugtrio in defeat. "You see, we often come here to understand the sea! You youngsters could never understand the beauty, the tranquility, and the wonderness of what the sea holds?"

"Despite the fact that you're a Ground-Type and that you're weak against water?" questioned Natsu.

"Um...well..."

"And despite the fact that stupid birdbrain here is a water-type and could easily understand the sea?" questioned Mia.

"Well, that's a special exception, but..."

"WAIT A MINUTE!" shouted Konan, snapping his fingers...er...flippers? "That time, when we had to do stupid sentry duty, YOU sneaked out to see the 'O wonderous sea,' DIDN'T YOU?"

"Um...yes..."

And those were probably the last words Dugtrio has ever said.

Everyone immediantly sensed the dark and red auras coming from Konan, and quickly grew frightened, especially Mia. Konan had a michevious grin on his face as he got closer to Dugtrio. "Well, I'm about to grant your wish of becoming the sea, with two things!"

"A-and that is...?"

"1, a CRITICAL BUBBLEBEAM! And 2! A huge mallet! Stupid mouse, give me the mallet! I'm going to play, 'Whack a Dugtrio!'

"Birdbrain, I lied about the mallet!" revealed Mia.

"What?!" Konan turned around to face Mia. "I thought you really had it when you threatned me back there!"

"That was a stupid bluff! It was your fault for falling for something that I never had in the first place!"

"Aha! I knew it! There's no way you could have gotten Loudred to give you the mallet in the first place! I knew it all along!"

"No you didn't! I just told you right now! And that mallet wasn't even Loudred's in the first place, stupid birdbrain!"

"What?! Then where did the mallet come from?"

"Loudred told me that it was Chatot's!"

"What could someone like him possibly do with a mallet?"

"Punishment!"

"But he never did that to us before!"

"Um...guys?" spoke up Natsu. "He left."

"What?" asked Konan.

"I said he left. He's gone."

"WHAT?! Where did he go?" asked Konan, searching around. "I swear when I find him, I will so wring his neck!"

"What did he do to you anyways?" asked Mia.

"Thanks to him, we were forced to do sentry duty, which we failed miserably, and missed dinner! And I was so looking forward for that dinner!"

"Well, we best drop it," suggested Natsu. "Anyways, we have to go explore that waterfall, remember?"

"Oh! That's right!" said Konan, now forgetting all about Dugtrio. "Alright! Let's go!"

* * *

Meanwhile, Dugtrio dug underground the instant Konan and his friends started talking and dug as fast as he could to the guild. When he finally arrived, he popped up in front of Loudred and Diglett, who were discussing something.

"WHOA!" shouted Loudred, surprised. "GEEZ! You gave me a fright there, Dugtrio!"

"DAD!" said Diglett, also surprised. "Don't scare us like that! Anyways, where were you? You were gone for almost an hour!"

"Ah, our apologies," apologized Dugtrio, trying to come up with something fast. "You see...we um...oh! We were on our way to work when we encountered a friend! Yes! We talked to each other, and we had no idea how much time past until now!"

"Then, what's your friend's name?" asked Loudred, suspicious.

"Yeah, you never told me about your friends before, other than the ones we have in the guild!" said Diglett, also interested.

Dugtrio had to think fast. "Oh! Um...his name was...Corn! Yeah! Corn the...Krabby! Yeah!"

"Corn?" said both Loudred and Diglett in unison, confused. "Never heard of that name before."

"Yeah! He's got a weird name!" said Dugtrio. They thought, _'Please buy it! Please buy it! We apologized for lying to you, son! But we just don't want to miss dinner!' _

Loudred and Diglett looked at each other and shrugged. "Well, at least introduce him to us next time you see him, dad!" said Diglett.

_'It worked!' _thought Dugtrio triumphly. _'Now, all I need to do is somehow get Konan and the others to forget this ever happened!' _

* * *

_Back with Konan and the others... _

"Ok, we're at the waterfall...nothing weird there," said Konan, looking around. When he and his teammates finally arrived, it was the biggest waterfall they have ever seen. The clear waterfall was raining down hard, and the only sounds were from the waves and the water rushing down. If there was only a rainbow nearby, then the scenery would be perfect.

"Let's see what happens if we touch it! Maybe something will happen!" suggested Natsu. He walked up to the rushing waterfall, and when he touched it, he was pushed back by a sudden force and fell on his back. "Yow!"

"Natsu! Are you alright?" asked Mia, running towards his aid.

_'She totally likes him,' _thought Konan mischeviously. "Let me try next! Maybe the waterfall will respond since I'm a water-type! I wonder what the secret is! CHHHHHAAAAARRRRGGGGEEE!"

**POW! **Just like Natsu, as soon as Konan ran towards the waterfall head on, he was pushed back by a sudden force, only this time, much harder.

"Yeah, and the secret is that you're an idiot for running towards the waterfall when you know full well for the result for Natsu," taunted Mia.

"See, Konan? It's intense," said Natsu.

"Duh, it's intense!" said Konan sarcastically.

"Anyways, if one were to fall under this waterfall, you'd probably be battered and possibly drown," muttered Natsu. "I never expected the waterfall to be so strong!"

_'I think that everyone knows that already,' _thought Konan.

"So what should we do first?" asked Mia. "Touching the waterfall will injure us, but there might be a switch or something around here."

"Good idea!" agreed Natsu.

"Wait! I just thought of something!" announced Konan. "Maybe it has a secret password!"

"A...password? Well, that is also possible."

"And I think I know it!" said Konan. He turned to the waterfall and yelled at the top of his lungs, "HOCUS POCUS!"

Nothing. The waterfall just kept on rushing downwards like any other waterfall would.

"Er...ABRACADABRA!"

Still nothing.

"Um...PRESTO!"

Nothing once again.

"PRESTO CHANGO!"

Meanwhile, a cricket was chirping.

"BIPPITY BOPPITY BOO!"

The cricket was still chirping, but more faster.

"OH THE F*** WITH THIS! ALAKAZAM!"

More crickets came by and chirped.

"Yeeaaah. A password, really?" asked Mia, pretending to sigh out of boredom.

Konan glared at Mia, obviously embarrassed and frusterated. "Oh yeah?! Why don't you try you ungrateful little-"

Then, he stopped midsentence because he started to get dizzy. Konan stumbled back a little, fell on his butt, and clutching his head with one hand. Mia and Natsu noticed this and ran to him. "Hey, are you alright?" asked Mia, concerned.

_'Ugh! This dizziness...it's the same as before...!' _thought Konan as he was still experiencing pain in his head.

* * *

_The scene changes, and it shows a strange Pokemon that seems so unfamiliar and strange. The Pokemon arrived at the entrance at the waterfall, and without hesitation, jumps right into it! _

_Afterwards, the Pokemon tumbled around a bit until it was inside some cave in the waterfall. It looked around, then proceeded deeper into the cave. _

* * *

_'Whoa!' _thought Konan, his eyes wide open as soon as he saw his vision. _'It happened again! But who was that Pokemon? And why did he look awfully familiar?' _

"Hey, are you okay, Konan?" asked Natsu gently. After Konan stood up, he explained everything in his vision.

"Another vision?" questioned Natsu. "So, let me get this straight. You had a vision that you saw some Pokemon jump into a waterfall, and in there, there was a cave?"

"Yeah," said Konan. "So, we just do what the guy did. Jump right into the waterfall! Then we'll see some cave and we'll prove I'm right!"

"Yeah, let's go jump through a waterfall! Sure, let's all get ourselves killed! Sounds like a great idea!" said Mia sarcastically. "Not! You idiot! We can't take the risks! Natsu is a Fire-type, so Fire-Types can't survive in water! You and I can swim, but what about Natsu? What if there's not a cave behind the waterfall? If we all jump, then we'll get pounded really badly and then drown!"

"But what the heck! If there really is a cave back there...we could be rich!" said Konan with money signs on his eyes.

"That's not the problem here, stupid birdbrain!" barked Mia more annoyed.

"Hmm...well, Mia's theory could be right. This is a heavy risk we're taking," said Natsu. "The waterfall is coming down really heavily, and imagine what would happen if we hit a solid wall! But..."

"But...?" echoed Konan and Mia.

"...Is there really a cave back there? Besides, if what Konan says is true, then we would be really lucky and the first explorers to discover the cave! Besides, Konan's visions helped us before when Drowzee kidnapped Azurill! What's the harm in relying on the visions once more? And anyways Mia...I trust Konan. He helped me so many times! There's no reason not to distrust him! So, I'm placing my trust in him!"

"Well...when you put it like that...you do make it sound like he's right..." muttered Mia. " Alright, fine! We'll test it to see if it's true or not!"

"About damn time you made up your mind!" said Konan in relief.

"But, if you're wrong and we all end up dead, I will totally haunt you in the afterlife! Besides, I'm only doing this risk for Natsu, not for your visions! And, if you were right, then I'll go down on my knees, and apologize to you deep within my heart! I'll even stop calling you birdbrain!"

"Sounds like a deal to me!" said Konan, shaking hands with Mia to form the deal. He thought, _'Aha! The fact that stupid mouse said that she's doing this for Natsu proves that she LIKES him!~' _

Then, Team Pokepals walked backwards a little before stopping to glare at the waterfall. Konan felt nervous and was wondering if his visions were actually right. Mia was a bit scared, but she's done so well to hide it. Natsu was more nervous and was muttering, "No! I have to be brave! If I hesitate, even for a second, I'll fall down the waterfall! I have to be brave! I have to be brave!"

Natsu turned to his friends and said, "Ready? Let's do this, Konan and Mia!"

"Yeah!" cheered Konan as Mia silently nodded her head. "Let's start the countdown! Three...two...one...BLASTOFF!"

With that signal off, the three friends ran at the same time and leaped off the peak as hard as they could towards the rushing water.

"Waaaahhhh!" screamed Mia and Natsu, tumbling around in the ground.

"WEEEEEEEEE!" cried out Konan, actually having fun. Then, the three friends stopped tumbling and landed safely. "Hey! We actually lived!"

"Ow ow ow..." groaned Natsu, struggling to stand up.

"Where are we?" asked Mia. "Is this...the afterlife?"

"No way the afterlife would look something like this!" said Konan. "And, this is the cave I was talking about!"

"Yes! It is a cave!" agreed Natsu excitedly. "You were right, Konan! Come on! Let's go deeper!" With that, Konan and Mia followed the excited and happy Natsu deeper into the cave.

* * *

_Waterfall Cave B1F _

"Oh! I almost forgot!" announced Konan, making everyone stop walking. He turned to Mia and demanded, "Pay up!"

"What are you talking about?" asked Mia, tilting her head in confusion.

"You know! Before we jumped into the waterfall, you said that if I was right, you would go down your knees, apologize from your heart, and even stop calling me, 'Stupid birdbrain!' So, say it!"

"Grr..." growled Mia, annoyed that she actually made the promise. "Well...a promise is a promise. And I've never been one to break my promises. Alright then." Mia went down on her knees on the cold, wet ground and bowed her head. "I'm truly truly sorry for not believing you. And I won't call you stupid birdbrain."

"And, you have to apologize for all the times you teased me! And for the times when you hit me just because I was annoying!" said Konan.

"K-konan! That's going too far!" said Natsu, knowing full well that Mia would rather skip dinner than say that to Konan.

"Hmm...ok then. I did say she had to apologize once," agreed Konan.

"Thanks, Natsu," thanked Mia, feeling a bit happy, but still a bit mad at Konan for hurting her pride.

Konan turned to Mia. "And thanks...?"

"Shut it."

"...Eh, I'll take it."

* * *

_Waterfall Cave B2F _

"Hey! An enemy!" cried out Natsu, getting into a battle stance. Everyone turned and saw a Tangela approaching them, ready to fight.

"...The hell is that weird hair looking Pokemon?" asked Konan.

"Don't be fooled by its appearance," said Natsu. "It may look that way, but it's a Grass-Type! Water-Types are weak again types like them! Please leave this to me!" Then, he charged towards the Tangela with a battle cry.

"Sleep Powder!" called the Tangela, releasing an indigo powder with light blue and pink sparkles that surrounds Natsu, making him stop.

"Ahh...so sleepy..." groaned Natsu, before falling to the ground, falling asleep.

"Oh, come on! That's it?" shouted Konan, irritated. "And I thought that it would be a good fight! Oh well! Pound!" Konan's arm glowed as he ran towards the Tangela.

"Constrict!" shouted the Tangela, spinning around quickly.

"What the-?! Gh!" When Tangela got near Konan, he got two blue vines that came out of his body and wrapped them around the Piplup.

"Hehehehe! I got you now!" crackled Tangela.

"Wha-?! Ah man! This is so wrong in so many ways! Are you really into that kind of stuff?!" exclaimed Konan, struggling to get free.

"What?! No! That's disgusting!" shouted Tangela, now disgusted.

"Hey! Help, stupid mouse!" shouted Konan, turning his head towards Mia.

"...I'm the only serious person in this team, am I?" muttered Mia, running towards Tangela.

"Nhh..." groaned Natsu, starting to wake up.

Tangela then made the two blue vines tangling Konan lift him to the air. Then, Tangela shouted, "Vine Whip!" Two more blue vines came out of his body and striked Natsu, who yelped in pain.

"YOU-!" Mia's calm expression was changed to a fierce anger, as her speed increased when she saw Tangela attacking Natsu.

Tangela, surprised at this sudden outburst, sputtered, "V-vine Whip!" Two blue vines came straight towards Mia.

However, Mia swiftly dodged them and jumped into the air before yelling, "Thundershock!"

**BOOM! **Mia's body glowed yellow, then released a critical yellow lightning from her body and towards the Tangela, deafting him and making him faint. As soon as the Tangela fainted, Konan was released from the vines and stood up, shocked with a gaped mouth.

"Whoa...I didn't think Mia would go that beserk due to Natsu getting hurt..." muttered Konan. "Man, maybe I shouldn't mess with her too much from now on...But, this just proves that Mia secretly likes Natsu!"

"Natsu, are you alright?" asked Mia, rushing towards Natsu, who was slowly waking up.

"Huh...? Yeah, I'll be fine. I didn't get too injured," said Natsu. "I can't believe that I got hit by Sleep Powder. I'm sorry."

"Don't apologize," ensured Mia. "What's important is that you're safe."

"HEY! What about me?!" asked Konan, annoyed.

"Oh, right. Sorry. Here's an Oran Berry," said Mia, getting out an Oran Berry and throwing it to Konan.

Konan shrugged. "Huh, guess it's better than nothing." As soon as he chewed on it and started eating, he dropped the Oran Berry and clutched his stomach. "OH MAN, NOT THIS AGAIN!"

"What?" asked Mia, rushing towards Konan.

Natsu picked up the half-eaten Oran Berry and said, "This is...an Oren Berry!"

"Not again!" groaned Konan. "Mia, you did this on purpose!"

"What?! How can you say this is my fault st-um...Konan! And how was I supposed to know that was an Oren Berry!"

"Hey, guys! There's the stairs!" said Natsu, pointing to a pair of stairs. "How about we continue the discussion while walking out of here, okay?"

* * *

_Waterfall Cave B3F _

"We go this way!"

"And I say we go that way!"

"Why do you always have to assume it's the left path? Lefty's bad! Go right! Right is always right!"

"Yeah, well right paths can be wrong too! I say we go left!"

Mia and Konan were arguing about which path was right to take, the left or right. Mia argued that left paths would be suitable, while Konan decided that left paths would be more fitable.

"Um...guys?" called Natsu. "There's the middle path."

Mia and Konan looked to where Natsu was pointing and saw a third path, the one in the middle, just there. They haven't even noticed it. "...Oh," both of them said in unison.

"Well, we should get going n-whoa!" Before Natsu could finish his sentence, he tripped over a rock and fell facedown towards water. The water was not that deep, but something else happened. All of a sudden, Natsu disappeared!

"Whoa! What happened to him?!" shouted Konan, rushing to where Natsu was. Then, he jumped into the water and continued jumping, splashing water around. "Hey! Hey, magical water! Tell me where Natsu is!"

"I remembered one of these!" exclaimed Mia. "In Dungeons, there are always spots you must never touch, such as the water Natsu accidentally stumbled upon. If you do step into one, you instantly get teleported somewhere in this floor! However, in situations like this, if you're a Water-Type, then you're safe!"

"Seriously? Man, where is he then?" questioned Konan.

"Looks like we'll have to go find him then," said Mia. "And if we're lucky, we might stumble upon a pair of stairs too. Now, let's hurry up and go to the middle path."

"...You like Natsu, don't you?" teased Konan as they were walking around the dungeon.

Mia looked at Konan, shocked. "No! Why would you think of that?"

"Ha! That expression shows that you do!"

"First, I only view Natsu as a good and kind friend! And second, we already discussed this!"

"Still, you like him, don't ya?~ Admit it! I see you caring for Natsu all the time! Well, most of the time."

"That's what friends do! Besides, we are close together!"

"Yeah, so close that you guys were handcuffed together and had to bath together, sleep together, and even go to the bathroom together! I won't tell anyone, but I'll just use this method to tease you!~"

_'Grr...how dare he use one of my important secrets to his advantages?' _thought Mia, ready to electrify Konan. "Ugh! I had enough!" shouted Mia, in a red aura with electricity in the background, obviously scaring Konan. "Listen up, KONAN! I'll say this once! I. Do. Not. Think. Of. Natsu. That. WAY! And he and I are sibilings anways!"

"...Wait, what?" asked Konan, confused. Natsu and Mia being sibilings was news to him. In fact, it almost seemed impossible! "How are you guys sibilings...when you're a Pikachu and Natsu's a Chimchar?"

Mia sighed. "Not really blood-related sibilings. I was adopted by Natsu's family. That get through your head?"

"Ohhhhhh," said Konan, understanding. For a moment there, Konan had gotten confused, until Mia explained to him.

"AAAAAHHHHHHH!" yelled out a familiar voice.

Konan and Mia turned to each other before running and shouting, "Natsu!" Just as they expected, they saw Natsu on the ground, bleeding a bit and more injured. However, they did not expect four Woopers surrounding the poor Chimchar.

Just the sight of four Woopers attacking poor defenceless Natsu made Mia angry. "Damn you-!" She popped a Blast Seed into her mouth, and burning red fire erupted from her mouth and towards the Woopers. Three of the Woopers managed to dodge, but one Wooper got unlucky and got hit by the blast, but still managed to stand on his feet.

'Oh look, this buddy's reinforcements has arrived! And it's just a small girl and her boyfriend," teased one of the Woopers sadistically.

"Excuse me! But I'm not her/his boyfriend/girlfriend!" both Mia and Konan angrily, pointing to each other.

"Aw, and they even sound perfectly together," said another Wooper.

"You guys...ARE SO GONNA PAY FOR HURTING NATSU AND THINKING THAT THIS STUPID WART IS MY GIRLFRIEND!" shouted Konan.

_'W-wart?!' _thought Mia, shocked.

"Take this! Bubblebeam!" A barrage of blue bubbles fired at the Woopers, but the four Woopers dodged at the last second, snickering.

"Mia...Konan...Woopers...are Water and Ground...Types..." groaned Natsu. That caused Mia to gasp, then glare at the Woopers angrily.

"What? What's wrong, Mia? We can take care of them!" said Konan, confused.

"...You four fought Natsu knowing full well that he's a Fire-Type and that he's at a disadvantage at Water and Ground-Types, right?" asked Mia, to the Woopers.

"Yeah, but he's too persistent," answered one of the Woopers. "And he didn't do anything but keep using Fire-Type attacks. Annoying. We were about to end his pain when you guys came."

_CRACK. _Konan thought he heard a small cracking sound when he slowly turn to Mia. Her face was that of undenying hatred as she glared more at the Woopers. If looks could kill, they'd all be dead. "You'll pay...FOR EVEN LAYING A FINGER ON NATSU! THUNDERSHOCK!"

**BOOM! **Bolts of lightning swiftly and painfully shocked the four Woopers critically and effectively. Three of the Woopers were still standing due to the fact that they were also a Ground Type. However, the other Wooper, the one that got hit by the Blast Seed, was defeated immediantly. Even if he was a Ground Type, he couldn't withstand Mia's electrifiying attack, for he couldn't deny he was also a Water-Type.

"Bring it on!" shouted one of the Woopers. All three of them shouted, "Water Gun!" All three Woopers released spirals of water from their mouth at Mia and Konan.

"Mia! Let's do a combination attack! Bubblebeam!" shouted Konan, unleashing the barrage of clear blue bubbles.

"Alright! Thundershock!" agreed Mia, firing more thunder. The bubbles comblined with the thunder, making the bubbles a bit more faster and sparks coming out of them. However, when they collided with the the spirals of water, there was a huge crash, and nobody won that round.

"Awesome! We should have done that against Drowzee!" said Konan, excited.

"Don't get too cocky! Mud Shot!" shotued one of the Woopers, jumping up into the air and firing multiple small balls of mud.

"No problem! Ground against Water! And we all know which type wins!" shouted Konan. "Bubblebeam!" Once more, he shot several blue bubbles from his mouth towards the aproaching mud balls.

**BOOM! **As soon as the two attacks collided, there was dust clouds surrounded the area, making everyone unable to see each other. "Damn! Where did they go?" wondered outloud a Wooper.

"Konan! Natsu! Where are you?" asked Mia.

"Gotcha!" said a Wooper, coming from behind Mia. "Mud Shot!"

"Kya!" yelled Mia in pain after being hit by multiple mud balls from the back. She landed on the floor, but got up quickly. She saw the Wooper who attacked her approaching. "Damn you...Thundershock!"

Wooper easily dodged the Electric Type attack and said, "You seriously think that that trick's go-"

"Thunder Wave!" shouted Mia, unleashing a surprise attack. The Thunder Wave did hit Wooper, however, Wooper was still walking!

"Didn't you know? Moves like that have absolutely no effect on Ground Types like me!" revealed Wooper. "Now, Mud Shot!"

Luckily, Mia found a large rock to use a shield against the mud balls and hid behind it. She thought, _'Damn it! I forgot about that! Well, if Thunder Wave won't work, guess I'll have to use THAT strategy.' _

"Haaaaaa!" cried out Mia, charging towards the Wooper.

"You're wide open!" shouted Wooper, ready to aim. "Mud Shot!" Once again, more mud balls aimed at Mia. But suddenly, as Mia was running towards the Wooper, her speed increased a bit, and she was easily dodging the mudballs. "W-what the-?!"

"Thundershock!" cried Mia, unleasing thunder. This time, it hit the Wooper accurately, making it yell in pain.

"Nice try, but I'm also a Ground Type! Don't under-"

"Tail Whip!" yelled Mia, jumping into the air and bringing her tail down. Normally, Mia's true power isn't strength, but this attack she delivered to that Wooper looked like it hurt a lot. So hard, that it knocked out the Wooper the second it hit him.

Meanwhile, Konan found himself fighting two Woopers. "Hey two against one isn't fair!" Konan complained.

"There is not fair or unfair in a fight!" said one of the Woopers.

"Hey, brother! Let's teach this brat a lesson!" said the other Wooper.

"Agreed!" cried out the other Wooper.

"I said I'll make you pay for hurting Natsu, and that's just what I'm gonna do!" promised Konan. "Bubblebeam!"

"Water Gun!" both Woopers said in unison. Both Water-Type attacks collided, but this time, the two Water Guns blast past the bubbles and hit Konan.

"Gah!" Konan landed in the ground, but still got up, despite being injured. "Damn, looks like I need Mia to help me! But where is she?"

"Ha! Relying on your girlfriend when she needs the one relying? You really are a poor boyfriend!" said one of the Woopers, being cocky.

"Oh, shut up! And she's not my girlfriend!" shouted Konan, with an angry anime mark at his head. "Water Sport!" Konan releases multiple streams of water all around the area.

"...What good will that do, idiot?" asked one of the Woopers. "This move only reduces Fire-Type moves!"

"Damn it!" shouted Konan angrily. " I thought it would increase Water-Type moves!"

"Well, even if it did, that means that we would also get stronger too! Not just you!"

"Damn it again!"

"Now, disappear! Water Gun!" echoed both Woopers, unleasing spirals of water from their mouths and towards Konan. Just then, Konan noticed that the dust had completely cleared and that Mia was behind the Woopers, only several distances away, and she was feeding Natsu an Oran Berry. When she noticed Konan, she nodded.

Konan immediantly knew what Mia's plan was and nodded back. "Growl! Bubblebeam!"

"Thundershock!" With the power of Growl, Konan managed to decrease the opponents' Water Guns, and then counter attack with Bubblebeam. Now, the attacks have collided and were even so far. In addition, Mia's surprise attack, Thundershock had hit the Woopers from behind, ceasing their Water Gun attacks and giving Konan's Bubblebeam a chance to strike the Woopers, finally defeating them.

"Woo! We did it!" shouted Konan in relief as he ran towards Mia and Natsu. "Hey, Natsu! You alright, pal?"

"Yeah, I'm just recovering my strength," said Natsu, standing up. "Great job, you two! And thank you for saving me! Also, I found the stairs a little eariler! Let's go!"

* * *

_Waterfall Cave B4F _

"Also, guys? I forgot to tell you something," said Natsu, making them stop.

"What is it?" asked Mia.

"I found out there are a lot of Water Type Pokemon in this Dungeon. I barely survived against the first two Water Type Pokemon I encountered in the last floor, but then I had to face those four Woopers and...and...I'm so weak..."

"Please don't worry, Natsu," ensured Mia. "It's not your fault that you're weak against Water-Type Pokemon. I have weaknesses too, and so do Konan. Besides, if another Water Type enemy comes, I'll protect you!"

"Yeah, except when it comes to Woopers," said Konan.

"Hey! You're a Water Type too! Your Water Type moves won't have much effect against other Water Type moves let alone a Grass Type's! And I could easily zap you with my lightning right now!"

"Bring it on! I'm not scared of you!" taunted Konan. "I am so going to kick your butt all over the place!"

"Not if I kick your butt first!" shouted Mia.

"You don't even know the definition of 'kick butt' until you seen that I kicked your butt!"

"Well, we'll see whose butt will be kicked, won't we?"

"It won't be my butt, because my butt will remain unkicked!"

"After this fight, your butt will be going down!"

"If my butt is going down, then your butt will be going down with my butt!"

"Enough butting around! Time to-"

"Guys? I found the stairs. Please stop...um...butting around?"

There was an eerie awkward silence. Nobody said anything as they went down the stairs.

* * *

_Waterfall Cave B5F _

"Hey guys! More enemies this time!" announced Mia, pointing to a Poliwag and Wooper approaching.

"Aw! I got 16 Poke Gald!" whined Konan, picking up a gold coin.

"Well, I got a Yellow Gummi and an Oran Berry," commented Natsu, placing the items in his Treasure Bag. He and Konan were obviously doing a little scavenger hunt on finding items instead of noticing the enemy.

One of Mia's eyes twitched and then she turned to face the enemy. Deciding to let her anger out of them, she shouted, "You guys are gonna be sorry you ever fought me!"

"Oh look, Poliwag! Some little girl is going to beat us up!" teased the Wooper.

"What, is she going to try and shock us with her electrifying-"

"THUNDERSHOCK!" shouted Mia, impatient.

"GGGAAAAHH!" yelled Poliwag, defeated quickly.

"W-what the?! You're going to pay for that!" shouted Wooper. "Mud Shot!"

Mia dodged the mud balls and threw Geo Pebbles at Wooper at fast as she could from her Treasure Bag. They weren't much effective, but they were still a distraction. Next, she ate a Blast Seed and managed to burn Wooper a little bit before he put out the fire with his Water Gun. As soon as Wooper was completely drenched, Mia took this advantage and shouted, "Thundershock!" Even though Wooper is a Ground Type, he is completely wet head to toe, and it was dangerous to shoot lighting in a puddle if someone's standing there. Therefore, Wooper was electricuted and fainted.

"...Hey! I found 24 Poke Gald! Huh? What happened here?" wondered Konan as he looked up and saw that the area was filled with small fires, scattered and broken rocks, and puddles.

"Yeah, what happened?" asked Natsu, standing up.

Mia tried to be as calm as she could. "Well, while you guys were busy scavenging, I had to take care of some enemies all by myself!"

"Ah! Really? I'm truly sorry, Mia!" apologized Natsu as he bowed his head.

"Don't worry about it." Then, she turned to Konan, who tilted his head in confusion. "Well? Where's my apology?"

"Oh! Um...Yeah, I'm sorry too. As an apology gift, I'll give you a Big Apple," offered Konan, taking out an Apple from his Treasure Bag.

"...Konan, this is just a regular Apple. That Big Apple trick may have worked on Loudred, but it won't work on me."

"...Just take it."

"Eh, why not?"

* * *

_Waterfall Cave B6F _

"Hey guys! I see the stairs!" said Natsu, pointing to something.

"...Hey, is there someone there?" wondered Konan, squinting his eyes. Indeed there was. In front of the stairs was a huge Whiscash that looked very serious and fully determined. "Whoa, a big guy. I didn't even know there were whales here."

The Whiscash finally noticed Team Pokepals and turned to them. "Welcome."

"Um...thanks?" thanked Konan awkwardly.

"Do you wish to climb down these stairs?" asked Whiscash.

"Yes," said Mia.

"You must first answer one question," warned Whiscash. "And only the Piplup must answer the question."

"Huh? Why me?"

"Sure, that's easy," agreed Mia without a second thought.

"Ok then. It's just one question," Natsu also agreed.

"Hey, don't I get a say in this?" asked Konan, annoyed. "*sigh* Fine, I'll bite."

Whiscash asked the question, "Do you enjoy _fishing_?"

"..."

"..."

"..." The three friends looked at each other in surprise in the awkward silence.

"Fishing. Do you enjoy it?" repeated Whiscash.

"I...I didn't even know it was possibly to fish, considering how we're all Pokemon and I didn't think other Pokemon would eat other...fish Pokemon by fishing," said Konan awkwardly.

"Rubbish," scoffed Whiscash. "When you awake at dawn, weighed under with only the finest of lines and nightcrawlers, there is nothing in this world that can stand between a Pokemon and his fish."

"I can already tell this is going into an uncomfortable direction," muttered Konan, sweatdropping. Natsu and Mia...kinda feel sorry for Konan now.

"Sometimes I get so excited for fishing that I find it difficult to sleep. And sometimes, I stay up all night just wondering," rambled on Whiscash.

"Really," said Konan.

_'Wondering about what?' _thought all three sweatdropping.

"...Wondering about the trout," answered Whiscash as if he read their mind.

"I can't believe I'm listening to this," said Konan, more and more annoyed as the awkward silence became more awkward.

"And when I come home, satsified for my everday meal of fishes, I roar triumphly to the heavens, and for desert, my wife make the best bass chowder ever!" bragged Whiscash.

"This is turning untrue at this point. EVERYTHING you're saying is a lie. And I don't even think bass chowder is even a thing," corrected Konan, getting more annoyed.

"I...I just..." Whiscash must been really obessed about fishing, since he's rambling on and on about it. "I just love fishing, man. I love it."

"Great. Look, me and my pals gotta get going now, so..."

"Please. I beg you. Remember my story," begged Whiscash. Natsu and Mia turned to each other, feeling more sorry for Konan.

"What story? What the hell are you talking about?" asked Konan, wanting to end this conversation and get out of the floor immediantly before the situation turns more awkward.

Then, Whiscash took a battle pose and announced, "I am known for catching and eating fish. I am known for telling tales of fishing. With my greatest fishing skills, I will catch any fish Pokemon and eat them so that the world may know me as the Whiscash whose eaten all kinds of fish Pokemon! I am the Just Swordfish! The end has come!"

"'Just Swordfish?' I'm gonna have to kick your ass for such a lame pun," said Konan, feeling a bit relief that he gets to fight now.

"Zen Headbutt!" called Whiscash. The top of his head glowed blue and begans to surround in a light blue relefective shield. Then, he slams it towards Konan.

"OWWW!" shouted Konan, just thrown off a few distances.

"Konan!" shouted Mia and Natsu. Both of them got into battle positions.

"So, we are going to fight after all," muttered Mia.

"Arg! Where did that come from?! I thought you were just some weak idiot!" shouted Konan, walking towards Whiscash, who calmed down.

_"Do you enjoy fishing?" _repeated Whiscash.

_'This again?' _everyone thought.

"Yes! Yes, I enjoy fishing!" said Konan, gritting his teeth in pain.

"Which is your favorite?"

"My favorite what? And I thought you were going to ask one question!"

"Zen Headbutt!" Once again, Whiscash attacked with the same attack he used eariler, onl much stronger now.

"Ow! Stop it man! Your last attack nearly knocked me out!" said Konan.

"Which fish is your favorite?" repeated Whiscash, being more specific.

"I-I don't know! I guess...maybe Magikarp?"

"You may pass," said Whiscash, relaxing his shoulders.

As Team Pokepals were climbing down the stairs, Konan thought, _'The next time I see his ugly fish face, I am so going to rearrange it!'_

* * *

_Waterfall Cave B7F _

"Drats! More Pokemon!" said Mia, as she and her team encountered two Grimers.

"Hahahaha! Freeze and we'll attack you!" laughed one of the Grimers.

"Don't you mean, 'Or, we'll attack you?'" corrected Natsu.

"We know what we said!" said the other Grimer. "Poison Gas!" The Grimer opens his mouth and releases a thick dark green gas from his mouth at Team Pokepals.

"Quick! Cover your mouths!" ordered Konan, covering his mouth with his flipper.

"Poison Gas will still be effective even if we cover our mouths!" muffled Natsu. "Don't worry! Eat this!" Natsu handed a Pecha Berry each to Konan and Mia.

"What do these do?" asked Konan, winching in pain from the poison effects.

"Pecha Berry helps cure poison! Hurry and eat it!" said Natsu before pooping a Pecha Berry in his mouth. As soon as everyone ate one, the poison went away.

"Alright! My turn! Pound!" Konan charged at one of the Grimers with a glowing arm and smashed his glowing arm at him.

"Ember!" shouted Natsu, firing small blazes of fire towards the second Grimer.

Due to his body made of muk, Grimer easily dodges Ember and counterattacks. "Mud-Slap!" He slammed both his hands into the ground and pulls them up, throwing clumps of mud at Natsu.

Natsu, instead of dodging, tried to block them using his arms for protection, but was thrown back a few meters.

"Thunder Wave!" shouted Mia, unleasing a wave of electricity towards the two Grimers.

"Gh-! What the?! I-I can't move!" exclaimed one of the Grimers, trying to move.

"Ha! Thunder Wave is a move that causes the targets to not move for a while!" explained Mia. "Natsu! Konan! Now!"

"Right!" agreed both boys. "Ember!" "Bubblebeam!" The two opposite Types fused together to form a whirlwind of bubbles and embers. Blue sparks appear where the Bubblebeams touched the Ember. The combination attack was so powerful and fast that it hit the two Grimers accurately and knocked them to the waters.

"WHOA! That was so cool!" exclaimed Konan.

"Yes," agreed Natsu. "We have to remember that one in case for emergencies!"

Konan looked at the two wet, unconscious Grimers and said the most errible joke in history, "Ha! Looks like they're all 'washed up!'"

Silence. Except for a cricket noise.

"I get it!"

"Shut up, Natsu."

* * *

_Waterfall Cave B8F _

"Are we there yet?" asked Konan.

"No," said Natsu and Mia.

"Are we there yet?"

"No."

"Are we there yet?"

No."

"Are we there yet?"

"No!"

"...Are...we...there...ye-"

"NO!" shouted Mia impatently. "Damnit, Konan! Just go do something! Go have fun! I don't care how!"

Konan grinned. "Ok then!" He then ran off.

"Um...are you sure he's going to be ok on his own?" asked Natsu, worried.

"Don't worry! You know how strong-willed Konan is! The dumber he is, the more stronger he'll get!" ensured Mia.

_'Um...is that an insult or a compliment? And you seemed more strong-willed than Konan, Mia,' _thought Natsu sweatdropping. A little while later, Mia and Natsu found the stairs and decided to wait for Konan. "How do you think Konan's doing out there?"

"We're talking about a Piplup who's was once human and has some strange psyhic powers!" commented Mia. "There's no way Konan would get lost that easily!"

Meanwhile...

"I'm lost!" cried out Konan, somewhere.

Back to Mia and Natsu...

"But what if he encounters a Monster House?" asked Natsu, getting more worried.

"Come now, Natsu! We both know that even though Konan's stupid, he's not stupid enough to stumble upon a Monster House that easily!"

Meanwhile...

"Prepare yourself, boy! For you have fallen upon a Monster House!" shouted a Grimer. Konan was surrounded by a lot of Grimers, Woopers, Poliwags, Tangelas, and his worse enemy, Whiscashs.

_'Oh no! If I recall correctly, Monster Houses are a really dangerous trap that makes random Pokemon surround you!' _thought Konan. _'Wait a minute! I have a Petrify Orb! Natsu gave it to me eariler! He said that if I use it, all enemies surrounding me will become petrified!' _As Konan searched for his bag for the Petrify Orb, he froze.

"Oh no..." he muttered. "I used it on some Pokemon I encountered eariler! F**K!"

Back to Mia and Natsu...

"Still Mia, we have to remember that there are many Pokemon in this Dungeon."

"Oh, please! Konan's a Water-Type! Most of the Pokemon here are Water-Types, so it shouldn't be a problem for him!"

Meanwhile...

"Mud Shot!" shouted three or four Woopers, firing multple shots of mud.

"Crap, crap, crap! I forgot that they're also Water-Type!" shouted Konan, hiding behind a big rock.

Later, Konan was panting heavily and searching for his team. He managed to defeat only a few Pokemon in the Monster House and miracleously escaped and was running for his life. Then, he spotted his allies, only that they were holding cups and sipping on something.

"DUDE!" shouted Konan. "Where were you guys?! I was caught in a Monster House, almost killed, and now I'm running away froma whole mob of Pokemon who are after my life, and all you guys are doing is sipping tea?!"

"Actually, this is Natsu's Special Oran Berry Surprise," explained Mia, who stopped sipping.

"Wait, what do you mean a mob of Pokemon are after your life?" questioned Natsu.

All of a sudden, they heard rumbling coming closer and closer by every second. Konan yelped. "Hide me! Quick!"

_'Idiot,' _thought Mia. But, she pointed to a tree and Konan quickly hid behind it.

Right at that moment, the mob of Pokemon arrived in front of Natsu and Mia, who continued drinking Natsu's Special Oran Berry Surprise. "Have the two of you seen a Piplup by any chance? We have to fight him for intruding into our Monster House trap!" Natsu and Mia pointed left, and the mob and Pokemon went away.

As soon as the Pokemon left, Konan came out of his hiding place. "Now we're even," said Mia.

"...I'm never separating from you guys again," muttered Konan.

* * *

Finally, Team Pokepals finally arrived in the depths of Waterfall Cave, where they were in a room filled with sparkling, colorful gems. "Whoa!" exclaimed Konan, picking up a gem. "Look at these, guys!"

"I know!" said Mia, picking up a few gems and placing them in her Treasure Bag. "We should take the rest of these back to the guild! Then, we'll be rewarded plenty!"

"I agree!" nodded Natsu. After picking up a few gems from the ground, Natsu said, "Look over there! A gigantic gem!" Everyone looked up and saw a glittering huge red gem stuck to the floor.

"That is probably the biggest gem I've ever seen!" gasped Konan. "We'll be rich!"

"Everyone will be amazed if we take this back!" said Mia.

Natsu walked in front of the gem and tried to pull it out with all of his strength. "Urk! Uh!" Finally, he fell to the floor, panting. "It's...no use...It won't budge..."

"Let me try!" said Mia. She grabbed the gem and also started pulling it out. "Grrrr! Urk! Uk!"

After a few minutes later, Mia was still persistent and kept on trying to pull the gem out. Finally, Konan said, "Alright! Your turn's up! My turn!"

"N-not yet..." grunted Mia, still trying.

"Mia, please just let Konan have a turn," pleaded Natsu, trying not to stress Mia out.

_'Um...I'm not sure how I'm gonna lift this thing up cause I have flippers,' _thought Konan, looking at his flippers. _'But, I have to at least try!' _He took over Mia's place and tried pulling it out.

About 10 seconds later, Konan gave up and fell to the ground. "Wow, even Natsu tried to pull the gem much longer than you," said Mia.

"Oh...shut...up..." gasped Konan. Then, he had an idea. "I know! I'll use a move to break the gem apart!" He stood up quickly, and his arm glowed. "Pound-!"

"No no no!" shouted both Mia and Natsu, grabbing onto both his arms and holding him back from attacking the red gem.

"W-what are you guys doing?! I'm trying to get the gem out!"

"By out, you mean destroy it!" shouted Natsu.

"We want that huge gem to be brought back to the guild safely, not in pieces!" said Mia.

"Fine!" After that, everyone calmed down.

"Hmmm...let me try again. Maybe there's something I missed or something," suggested Natsu, walking towards the gem again.

Suddenly, Konan clutched his head as his head started filling with headaches. _'Ugh! It's happening again! This stupid dizziness!' _thought Konan.

* * *

_The scene changes once more and there was an awfully familiar Pokemon at the same room where Team Pokepals were. The mysterious Pokemon looked around, then pushed the huge red gem, triggering a small click sound._

_All of a sudden, there was rumbling, and the mysterious Pokemon turned to see a huge tidal wave approaching in it's direction. It tried to escape, but the current was too fast, and the tidal wave devoured the mysterious Pokemon. _

* * *

_'Holy-!' _thought Konan, shocked. _'So, pushing that gem will pull some sort of trap? Well, as long as Natsu doesn't push the gem, we should be alright!' _

"Hey! I just had a good idea! Why did I think of it sooner!" said Natsu, who stopped pulling the gem. "I'll push the gem! That should loosen things up a bit!"

"What?!" shouted Konan, turning to Natsu's direction. "NO! NO! NO! NO! NO-"

_Click. _The moment Natsu pushed the gem, the rumbling began. "W-what's going on?!" hollered Mia, trying to stay on balance.

"AHHHHH! NATSU, YOU IDIOT!" shouted Konan, grabbing Natsu by the collar of his scarf.

"Ahhhhh! What did I do?!" exclaimed Natsu, confused.

"We're gonna die! We're gonna die!" screamed Konan, running around in circles.

Then, Natsu saw the tidal wave approaching towards their direction. "AHHHHHHH! IT'S A TIDAL WAVE!"

"Run for it!" yelled Mia. But as soon as they tried to, the tidal wave caught up to them and swooped them away. Then, the three friends were screaming even after they were flung out.

Konan was to first to notice they were in the air and screamed, "AAAAHHHHH! WE'RE IN THE AIR!...AND WE'RE FLYING! WOOO! I BELIEVE I CAN FLY~"

**SPLASH! SPLASH! SPLASH! **The three friends fell to the ground-no, hot, and steamy water that saved their lives. Konan, drenched, shouted," That was awesome! Let's do it again! ...Why is the water near us warm?"

"Ugh...where are we?" groaned Natsu, clutching his head.

Mia shrieked, "Natsu! Quick! Get out of the water! Your fire will go out and then you'll die! Hurry!"

"What?! Natsu's going to die?! NOOO!" shouted Konan, running around in circles.

"Um...I'm not going to die," spoke up Natsu, completely fine, even thought the fire in his butt has gone out. "And even if my fire goes out, I won't die. That only happens to Charmanders. Also, I put out my fire when I'm going to sleep, so no worries."

"Whew, thank God," sighed Mia in relief. "But where are we?"

"Hi! Are you three okay?" asked a Teddiursa who came up to them. "You plopped down from nowhere and startled everyone!"

"Where are we?" asked Konan. He and his friends were surrounded by many curious Pokemon. It was...creepy.

"This is the Hot Spring," answered a Torkoal on top of a high rock. "The Hot Spring works wonders on tired muscles and creaky joints. Many Pokemon come here to relax. Tell me, youngsters, do you happen to have a map?"

"Yeah, we have one," said Konan, pulling out his Wonder Map which was somehow not drenched.

Torkoal pointed to what looks like some hot springs and explained, "This is the Hot Springs location."

"Really?" exclaimed Natsu. "So, that huge tidal wave carried us all the way from the waterfall into here? How ironic!"

"My goodness!" said Torkoal shocked. "It was the water that carried you all the way here? What a long journey that must have been! How about you relax for a while before you return home?"

"Good idea," agreed Natsu.

"Sure, I am getting tired anyways," said Mia.

"Awesome! If there was only a beach party," muttered Konan as he swam around. "Ah, who am I kidding? This is great! I guess that we'll relax for a while. I mean, it's not like we'll get in trouble for relaxing or anything."

* * *

"So, let me get this straight. You three decided to recklessly jump into a waterfall that may or may not cause your deaths, you triggered a Monster House that may be after Konan's life, at the deepest part of the waterfall, you saw a gigantic red gem, and when you triggered the gem, it triggered a trap that nearly got you killed, and somehow, you were able to land in the Hot Springs safely AND THEN DECIDED TO TAKE A REST?! Do you realize how irresponsible your decisions were?! We were all worried since you three were the last team to come in for dinner, and YOU DECIDED TO TAKE A BREAK?!"

"Yes," said Natsu sadly. "We couldn't bringthat giant gem with us though."

"Oh, no, no, no!" said Chatot happily. "This is a major discovery!"

"W-what?! A major discovery?!" exclaimed Natsu surprised at Chatot's change of attitude.

"Undoubtedly!~" replied Chatot. "A cave inside a waterfall, and more gems inside, no one knew about that until now!"

"Wow! We did make a discovery then!" said Natsu.

"Yes! We're one step closer to becoming a famous Exploration Team!" cheered Mia.

_'But, wait a minute,' _thought Konan, thinking carefully and seriously. _'That dizziness, that mysterious Pokemon...that Pokemon sure seemed a bit...familiar. I know...I seen that shape before! Wait a minute...oh God. It...was Wigglytuff! Which means...!' _

"This is wonderful!" said Chatot. "Your waterfall discovery is simply amazing! We must inform the Guildmaster about this!"

"Yeah!" nodded Natsu. Then, he, Mia, and Chatot noticed Konan's pale face. "Hmm? What's wrong, Konan?"

"..." _'I knew that look on Wigglytuff was always creepy,' _thought Konan. "...I think Wigglytuff went to the waterfall before."

"Eh?!" shouted Chatot, Natsu, and Mia.

"You're saying that Wigglytuff already went to the waterfall?" asked Natsu. Everyone turned to Chatot for answers.

Chatot, realizing that all attention was turned to him, quickly answered, "O-oh course not! If that were so, the Guildmaster wouldn't have ordered you to investigate in the first place, right?!"

"Well, knowing that guy, he MAY have forgotten," suggested Konan casually.

"Hmm...well, if you insist, I suppose I'll have to confirm it with the Guildmaster," Chatot finally agreed. Then, he muttered, "But I don't understand why they would want to spoil their own discovery How strange!" Then, the bird Pokemon turned to the three friends and told them, "I will go confirm what you have told me to the Guildmaster. Please wait here."

After Chatot entered Wigglytuff's Chambers, Konan realized something. "Oh yeah! We forgot to tell Chatot we took some gems! I so want to see the look on his face when he sees that we have gems in our hands!"

"Good thinking. I forgot to tell him also," agreed Natsu searching through his Treasure Bag. "Huh? I can't find them!"

"What?!" shouted Mia and Konan. They searched through their Treasure Bags as well but didn't find any gems.

"How is that possible?" asked Konan. "I know we put them in our bags! Where could they have-"

Then, everyone knew the answer. The tidal wave must have took the gems from their Treasure Bags! That explains why mostly everything in their Treasure Bags were so wet!

"...God damnit!" muttered Konan, annoyed.

Then, the doors to Wigglytuff's Chambers opened, and Chatot came out, with a shocked look on his face. Seeing his expression, Natsu asked, "So...how did it go?"

"...I have no idea how you three acquired this information," Chatot finally spoke. "But you are right. He said, 'Oh sweet memories! Sweet, sweet, memories! YOOM...TAH!' Then, he danced around a bit and said he had been there!"

_'What?! Then, we really didn't discover a new place!' _thought Natsu disapppointed.

_'Ugh...it looks like someone else beat us to the punch,' _thought Mia.

_'...Wow. Just...wow,' _thought Konan, stunned.

"And to sum it up, it's just as Konan suspected," continued Chatot.

"Oh...ok," said Natsu gloomily. "We thought we really did discover a new place. I wish that Wigglytuff told us from the start."

"Well, you know the Guildmaster," said Chatot. "Your cheerful, happy-go-lucky...forgetful guy! It is a shame, but I expect high hopes for you three!"

_'Great,' _the three friends thought of the same thing.

After dinner, Team Pokepals headed towards their room, tired. Konan thought, _'I should get some rest for tommorow. Wouldn't want to get Loudred in a bad mood again.' _

"*sigh* We went through a lot today," sighed Natsu. "But you know what? It was incredibly fun for me! Sure we found out that Wigglytuff already beat us to finding that cave, but it was our first exploration! I thought I was going to explode from excitement! I realized that it was the right choice to join an Exploration Team!"

_'And there he goes in super hyper excitment mode,' _thought Konan sarcastically.

Natsu pulled out his Relic Fragment necklace and declared, "One day, we're going to solve the mystery of this mysterious piece. That's a dream I want to accomplish!"

"And we'll help you throughout the way and support you!" promised Mia.

"But seriously, thanks, both of you," thanked Natsu.

"Huh? What are you talking about?" asked Konan.

"D-don't be ridiculous!" said Mia. "It's only natural for me to help you considering how younger sisters are always supposed to help out their siblings in need!"

"Yes, you're right," agreed Natsu. "But it's also natural for the older brothers to thank their younger sisters. Besides, thanks to you and Konan, I can explore thanks to you guys. I'm probably the biggest chicken around, but still, I try not to give up! And it was all because you came with me, Konan and Mia. Seriously, thanks!"

"And the great Konan will always help you, Natsu!" boasted Konan.

"I'll also support you as well," agreed Mia.

"Oh! I just thought of something!" said Natsu suddenly. 'I was thinking, about your dizziness Konan, you always seemed to be touching something when that happens!"

"Huh? Come to think about it...you may be right!" said Konan, thinking carefully. "When I heard Azurill's scream when I picked up that Apple and handed it back to him, And when I bumped into Drowzee, and when I touched the waterfall and when I touched that gem! Yeah, when I see something, it's always connected by something!"

"Also, when we rescued Azurill," continued Natsu. "You saw a vision of the future! But this time, you saw Wigglytuff going into the cave, right? And Wigglytuff claims to have gone there in the past! Which means you saw two visions of the past!"

"Whoa! I can see things in the future AND the past?! Incredible!" said Konan.

"So bastically," spoke up Mia. "If Konan touches things, he'll see things in the past or the future. That's a pretty cool ability!"

"Yes!" agreed Natsu. "And Konan could use it in lots of ways! Like for helping Pokemon like Azurill! It's fantastic, Konan!"

"Yeah, that's true," stated Konan. "But I don't think I always get a vision every time I touch something! It would be more useful if I could do it whenever I want, and if those stupid headaches would go away."

Just then, Chatot came into the room. "Hey, you three. The Guildmaster wishes to see you."

"Hey, ever heard of knocking?" asked Konan rudely.

"Konan, there's no door."

"...Oh. Never mind then."

When they arrived in Wigglytuff's Chambers, Chatot cleared his throat and announced to Wigglytuff, who had his back turned, "Guildmaster, I brought you Team Pokepals!"

When Wigglytuff didn't budge, Chatot asked again and again, "Guildmaster? Oh, Guildmaster!"

Then, Wigglytuff turned around so quick in a blink of an eye, surprising everyone. "Hiya! Your team went through a lot today! But don't worry! I'm keeping track of your activities! I should tell you why I called you here! We're planning a full expedition soon!"

"A full expedition?" echoed Team Pokepals confused.

"Yes! The guild will be going somewhere far away! Like a field trip!" explained Chatot. "It's much harder to explore than any nearby exploring area. That's why we need to prepare the trip properly. We carefully choose which guild members to go."

"Wow! Amazing!" said Natsu, getting excited.

"Usually, we never let rookies on an expedition," said Wigglytuff. "But since you three are working so hard, we're making a special exception this time!"

"Really? We're going to join the expedition?! That;s awesome!" exclaimed Konan, who started dancing along with Natsu, except for Mia.

"Hold on! You haven't been chosen yet!" interrupted Chatot, making Konan and Natsu freeze. "There's still time before the expedition. If you fail to do a good job, you cannot be selected." Konan and Natsu had gloomy, unhappy faces. "Hey! Don't look at me like that! I said if you fail to do a good job!"

"I'm sure you can do it!" encouraged Wigglytuff. "Do your best!"

"Yes!" nodded Natsu. He turned to his friends and said, "Guys! Let's do our best to be chosen for the expedition!"

"Agreed!" agreed Mia.

"Yeah!" said Konan, all pumped up.

* * *

**Hope:...And done! Whew! Took me two days to do this! Luckily I have spring break!**

**Konan: ..I was totally not awesome in this chapter! When will it be the time when I finally get to be like some knight in shining armor that always saves the girl?**

**Hope:Yeah, I'll hold you on that one. But at least you weren't ignored in this chapter! Plus, you ability came out handy today!**

**Konan: Well, that is true...**

**Hope: Alright! Please expect that the next chapter will be coming soon! Bye!**


	8. Teaming up with Team New Sunshine!

**Hope: Hey guys! Decided to put another chapter in just because I'm nice!**

**Konan: No you're not! You didn't even make me out in the spotlight a lot! I demand to have more screentime!**

**Hope: Hey! You're the main character! You're in almost all the chapters!**

**Konan: What do you mean ALMOST?! I have to be 100% in all of the chapters!**

**Hope: Shut up and eat your vegetables!**

**Konan: But I don't even-urk! *gets a mouthful of vegetables***

**Hope: With that settles, Mia! Please do the disclaimer!**

**Mia: Mage of Hope does not own Pokemon, only the Pokemon Company does. **

* * *

"UP AND AT 'EM! IT'S MORNING!" yelled Loudred, making sure that no pillows were going to be thrown to him this morning.

"Ahh...I had a good sleep," yawned Mia.

"It's probably because we slept early," replied Natsu. "Huh? Where's Konan?"

"*snore* *snore* Ahhh..." snored Konan, mumbling something.

Loudred walked up to him and yelled "WAKE UP, IDIOT!"

Instead, Konan kept tossing and turning, mumbling on and on. Natsu walked up to Konan, and started shaking him, saying, "Konan, please wake up! It's time to wake up!" Then, Natsu stopped and gasped. "Guys! He's cold!"

"What?" said both Loudred and Mia in unison.

"Did you check his pulse?" asked Mia.

"I don't know what someone's pulse is," said Natsu, getting worried.

"It's OKAY, guys!" ensured Loudred. "I know CPR!"

"Um.. Loudred? I don't think that's neccessary," said Mia.

But instead of doing CPR, Loudred just started shaking the sleeping Konan back and forth and shouting, "WAKE UP! WAKE. UP! ...WHY AREN'T YOU WAKING UP?!"

"I'm getting Chimecho," said Natsu.

"Maybe PUNCHING him will work!" suggested Loudred, raising his fist. _'This is for all the times you messed with me, like those times when you threw pillows at me!' _thought Loudred.

"Hold on, hold on, hold on!" shouted Mia, grabbing onto his arm.

"What are you-?! Let go!" ordered Loudred, waving his arm around to shake Mia off. But Mia was too persistent to let go and even bit Loudred's arm, making the Pokemon yell in pain. 'Alright! Alright! I won't punch him!"

Trusting Loudred's words, Mia let go. Loudred started shaking Konan again and yelling, "KONAN! We have like a deep dish pizza and nobody's eating it!"

Silence. Konan didn't wake up.

"...K-Konan! I FARTED and it smells really bad! You should wake up and smell it!"

Even more silence, and Konan still didn't wake up.

"Uh...what else should I say? ...Oh! Konan! In a few hours, the sun is going to rise!"

"..."

"..."

"..."

"...Nothing's happening, Loudred," pointed out Mia.

"Damn! This has never happened before!" said Loudred, scratching his head in confusion.

Then, Natsu thumped his fist into his hand as if he thought of something. "Oh! I know the right thing! Please wait right here!" Natsu ran out of the room speedy quick.

"Where are they? They should be here by now!" said Chatot, wandering back and forth.

"Chatot, if you keep doing that, you'll make the rest of us nervous!" said Bidoof.

Just then, Natsu appeared in the briefing room in a flash, panting heavily. "Chimcho...I need...a favor to ask...I need...a bucket...with cold...water..."

"Huh? Um, ok!" agreed Chimecho, confused over the situation. "Just follow me!"

"Hold on, Natsu!" called Chatot. "Where do you think you're going? And where are Konan, Mia, and Loudred?"

"Sorry, not time to explain!" called back Natsu as he followed after Chimecho. Soon, he reappeared with a bucket of cold, icy water as he paced towards his dormitory. Everyone wondered what he was going to do with that, until they heard an awfully familiar scream.

"AAAAHHHHH! COLD! COLD! COLD! COLD!"

Everyone was shocked. Since they saw Natsu with the bucket of water, and they didn't want to believe it, but would sweet, timid Natsu go so far as to wake up Konan with the bucket of water? Though Konan probably deserved it, Natsu didn't seem like the type to do such a thing.

Then, Team Pokepals and Loudred emerged from Team Pokepal's dormitory with a very irritated, drenched, and shivering Konan. Now, their doubts have been true. And luckily, Wigglytuff hasn't come out of his chambers yet.

When Team Pokepals and Loudreds entered the briefing room, Bidoof spoke, "Wow, Natsu. I mean, golly, wow. I never knew you haad the guts to throw water all over Konan. Guess we underestimated you."

Natsu tilted his head, confused. "Huh? What are you guys talking about? I never threw water at Konan."

"What?!" exclaimed Sunflora. "Then, what was that scream?"

"Oh, me and Loudred threw water over Konan," revealed Mia, with a happy look on her face. Loudred also seemed satisifed.

"I-I-I-I f-f-f-f-f-freakin' h-h-hate you g-g-guys..." said Konan with his teeth gritted.

"...AND THREE! SMILES GO FOR MILES!" everyone cheered, finishing the morning routine.

"Alright, Pokemon! Time to go to work as usual!" sang Chatot.

"HOORAY!"

After everyone left, Team Pokepals went into the second floor. Konan encouraged, "Alright, gang! In order to get into he expedition, let's work hard and do a lot of requests!"

"Alright!" agreed Natsu.

"For the first time, you're actually right," nodded Mia.

"Thank you, thank you-wait, what do you mean the first time?" asked Konan with a stern expression. "...Never mind. Let's go check the Job Bulletin Board now. Huh? It's already crowded."

Not exactly. Yes, Konan is correct, but the Job Bulletin Board wasn't that crowded. Instead, there were two Pokemon, a Zubat and a Koffing. Finally, the two Zubat and Koffing noticed Team Pokepals and looked freaked out.

"H-huh?! You three?!" exclaimed Koffing.

"Ack! It's the chicken (Konan), the tomboy (Mia), and chicken #2 (Natsu)" shouted Zubat.

"Hey! Don't call us that!" shouted Konan and Mia though they had no idea what kind of chicken is which.

"Huh? Haven't we seen those two before?" muttered Natsu. Suddenly, he snapped his fingers and pointed to both Zubat and Koffing, exclaiming, "Oh! I remember! You two are the two crooks who tried to steal my Relic Fragment!"

"What?!" shouted Mia, glancing at Zubat and Koffing. "...Natsu's right! What are you doing here?"

"Whoa-ho-ho! We'll have you guys know that we're an exploration team too!" revealed Koffing.

"Heh-heh-heh! What's wrong with that?" crackled Koffing.

"Well, this isn't good," muttered Konan cautiously.

"What?! An exploration team?!" exclaimed Natsu.

"That's right! But the way we operates ain't always by...the rules," said Koffing. "But I'm surprised! What are you three wimps doing here?"

"W-well, we're training as rookies to become an exploration team," explained Natsu.

"Whaat?!" said Koffing, shocked.

"You wanna become an explorer?" asked Koffing. Then, he and Koffing looked at each other before surrounding Natsu.

"Hey! What are you doing?!" shouted Mia, angrily.

"I don't like this one bit," growled Konan, worried for Konan.

"You, come with us," motioned Koffing.

"W-what is it?" asked Natsu nervously. After he was being escorted to a private spot, Koffing decided to resume their conversation.

"Now, don't take what I'm going to say the wrong way," continued Koffing. "But you should forget being an exploration team!"

"What?! But why?!" asked Natsu.

"What are they saying?" asked Mia desperately.

"I'm not sure," said Konan, trying to get in on the conversation.

"Well, you're timid for one thing. And I bet you don't like hurting others, right?" reasoned Zubat. "Therefore, a scaredy-cat like you can't be fit to be part of an exploration team."

"W-well, that is true. I am timid and I don't like hurting others," said Natsu sadly. "But that's why I'm training! So that I can overcome my shortcomings! Even now me and my team are working hard to become part of the guild's expedition!"

"Oh? An expedition, you say?" said Koffing, interested.

"Well, you won't be picked for the expedition if you don't have talent, right?" asked Zubat. "Well, it all comes doen to pure talent!"

"Big talk coming from the two guys we beat!" shouted Konan. "You sure talk about talent, but what are your skills? You guys were so weak and cowardly, that we easily beat you!"

"Whoa-ho-ho! Well, we didn't have the Chief with us at that time," replied Koffing.

"What? Chief?" questioned Natsu.

"That's right," Koffing started to explain. "Our exploration team, Team Skull, has three members. Me, Koffing, and our Chief!"

"Our Chief is incredibly talented out of the three of us!" stated Zubat.

"In other words, he's more powerful than the two of us," said Koffing.

"Heh-heh, if the Chief was around at that time, we would have snapped you guys like a twig," crackled Zubat.

"Oh! And speaking of which, here he comes! I can smell him!"

"S-smell?" echoed Natsu.

Konan sniffed the air, then covered his nose with his flippers. "Gah! Something recks!"

Everyone turned and saw a Skuntant climb down the ladder and down into the second floor, approaching Konan and Mia's direction. "Move out of the way!" the Skuntank ordered. Without warning, Skuntank sprayed an omnious, disgusting, and terribly bad stench that reeked of old cheese towards Konan and Mia, who started coughing and covering their noses.

"Gah! I can't breath!" groaned Konan.

"And I thought Skunkys were worse!" coughed Mia.

"Gah! *cough* *cough* W-what is this?" coughed Natsu. Natsu, Konan, and Mia weren't the only ones who can smell it. Others could smell the nasty stench and started coughing, covering their noses as well.

"Eek! It reeks!" squealed Sunflora.

"I-I sure didn't do anything!" ensured Bidoof embarassed.

"My eyes are burning!" complained Corphish.

"Gah! The hell is this?" swore Devin, which his team, Team Triolet was nearby.

"*cough* *cough*" Claire coughed heavily.

"Who farted?" asked Autumn, coughing.

Then, Skuntank turned to Natsu and shouted, "Move it! Or do you want to end up like those two I sprayed?"

Immediantly, Natsu ran out of the way and watched as Koffing and Zubat greeted their leader. "Boss!" exclaimed Koffing.

"Yeah! You sure showed them, Chief!" said Zubat happily.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever. So, did you two sniff out some jobs?" asked Skuntank.

"Actually, Chief..." Zubat whispered something into Skuntank's ear. Whatever he said must have gotten Skuntank interested.

"Oh! An expedition from the guild! I see!" said Skuntank excited. "That does sound tasty. Alright, let's get out of here. We must do some plotting."

"Yeah!" agreed Zubat and Koffing. As they were leaving, Koffing gave a glare to anyone who was watching the scene unfold and said rudely, "What are you looking at?"

Then, Zubat turned to Team Pokepals and said, "See ya around, wimps."

After they left, everyone knew they weren't going to like the team, Team Skull. Then, Natsu rushed towards Konan and Mia and asked, "Are you two okay?"

"Ow..." groaned Konan, standing up.

"I'm alright, Natsu," answered Mia.

"Oh, good!" sighed Natsu in relief. "But that sure was rough! I couldn't get the courage to stand up to their leader! I'm sorry."

"It's alright, Natsu!" ensured Konan.

"There was nothing you could have done," replied Mia.

"But still, he hurt you two..." said Natsu sadly. "They are right. I am a wimp, a big chicken."

"That's not true!" said Mia.

"Yeah! You're not a wimp!" Konan also tried to cheer up.

"Thanks for trying to cheer me up, the both of you," thanked Natsu. "But...I really am. Still, I decided to do my best every time. I'm not going to give up after all of this! So, I'm going to keep on trying!"

"That's the spirit!" cheered Konan happily.

"Right you are!" agreed Mia.

"Ok! From now on, let's keep doing our best! So let's do it," encouraged Natsu.

"Right! Let's do it!" agreed Konan, looking around in the Job Bulletin Board. Then, he took all of the requests from the board!

"Konan! What are you doing?!" exclaimed Mia. "We can't just hog all of them! Other exploration teams need them!"

"Just take requests that are in the same Dungeon! Like Mt. Bristle for example!" suggested Natsu.

"But...they're all requests for Mt. Bristle," noted Konan. "And besides, you said that we have to work hard to get into the expedition, right?"

"Well, that's true, but-"

"Exactly! And in order to work hard, we have to take a lot of requests and complete them! That way'll we'll work hard!" said Konan.

"...Konan actually makes a good point for once," said Mia.

"I also agree," agreed Natsu, shocked himself. Then, he noticved Konan hogging all of the requests from the Outlaw Board and complained, "You're going to take all of those too?"

"Yup! Because they're also requests from Mt. Bristle too!" grinned Konan, carrying requests. "There are...three job requests and two outlaw requests! Awesome! This should increase our chances of being in the expedition!"

"Let's prepare ourselves first," suggested Natsu. "That way, we won't end up too injured like our fight with Drowzee and Tyranitar."

"I have to agree with you on that one," said Konan. "Let's hurry and go as fast as we can!"

"Why?" asked Mia.

"I think because of one of the guidl rules that states that you cannot take all the requests off the Job Bulletin Board or the Outlaw Board," answered Natsu.

"Yeah, let's go!" said Konan. "Before anyone notices-"

"Ah man!" shouted an Electrike, who was looking at the Job Bulletin Board. "Someone hogged all of the requests! I swear, I only left for five minutes!"

"What?" some other Pokemon exclaimed before rushing towards the Job Bulletin Board. They noticed that the Electrike was right and wondered things like, "Who could have done such a thing?" or "Hurry up and post new jobs Dugtrio!" or "Whoever did this, I'm reporting to Chatot!" or "Where is Dugtrio!"

And it wasn't just the Job Bulletin Board. The Outlaw Board was missing all the requests as well and lots of explorers or rather outlaw hunters gathered around that board too, exclaiming something similiar to what the Pokemon at the Job Bulletin Board said.

"I said, let's go!" repeated Konan, not wanting anyone to find out he took all of the requests from both boards. "And fast!"

* * *

"Before we can go to any missions, can we go to that Dojo in Treasure Town?" asked Konan after they bought some items from the Kecleon Shop, and deposited money to Duskull Bank.

"You mean, Marowak's Dojo?" corrected Natsu.

"Yes!"

"What if it's not open, like the Electivire Link Shop?" asked Mia.

Then, Konan produced the biggest puppy dog eyes he could have ever produced. "PLEASE?! Please, please, please, please, please-"

"Alright!" said Mia. "We'll go pay a visit!"

"Yay!" cheered Konan. When they arrived at the entrance of Marowak's Dojo, the notice that was usually at the doors was no longer there. "Let's go inside!" suggested Konan, opening the front doors.

"Hold on, Konan!" interrupted Natsu. "We can't just barge in just like-"

"Too late!" said Konan, pushing the doors open. When everyone got inside, its was mostly made out of stone and bones. But they saw a Marowak inside, who had a surprised expression on his face.

"V-v-v-v-vistors?" muttered Marowak, surprised with tears forming in his eyes. "F-finally...my first customers!" Then, he ran towards Konan, shook his hand, walked to Mia, shook her hand, and went to Natsu, shaking his hand while saying, "Welcome to Marowak Dojo! It's dedicated to the training of exploration teams! The dojo went to rack and ruin, then to a pile of rubble! But it has risen from the dust to its former glory! But...I haven't had any customers, not even one."

"So sad!" said Natsu, smpathy for Marowak.

"But then!" continued Marowak as if he was telling a dramatic story. "Three heroes came by and then saved this poor soul's miesery by simply coming in here! In other words, you three are my first customers! And I don't even want money! Keep it! All I'm asking is that you train here!"

"Hmm...heroes huh? I'm starting to like the guy," muttered Konan with a sneaky grin on his face. Then, he and his friendss followed Marowak and stopped when the dojo master pointed to a vast room.

"That room leads to the training mazes," explained Marowak. "I have to tell you though, training mazes aren't like dungeons. That's the icky part, you see. Once you go in, you have to hand over everything in your Treasure Bag!"

"What?!" shouted Konan. "That's worse than handling over money! And we even have to hand over our scarfs and bows?"

"Everything."

"That's crazy!"

"Hey, I don't get handed the items," said Marowak. "Your items, even the ones you're equipped with, magically disappear once you enter a maze. So, in order to avoid that, go to the Kangaskhan Storage and store all your items in."

"But what if we faint in the mazes if we don't have any items?" asked Natsu.

"Hey, that's part of the whole training! However, you get to find items in the training mazes. In addition, if you get KO'd, you don't lose the new money and items you find in the maze! Instead, you get to keep them! So, you can go all out in the training maze!"

"Sweet! Free stuff!" exclaimed Konan. "And we also get to blow stuff up in the mazes!"

"Um...if that's what you consider training, that's fine. But don't blow up too much stuff, alright? And just train here to make me happy, alright?"

"You got it!" agreed Konan. "Mazes, here I-"

"No," said Mia, grabbing ahold of Konan. "We said only pay a visit. We already visited, and now we have to get going. Sorry, Marowak, but we'll have to train another time. We're busy at the moment."

"Oh, that's fine," said Marowak, understanding. "Take care!"

"Hey! Hey! Hands off, buddy!" shouted Konan as Mia was dragging him outside with Natsu following. "Help! Natsu!"

"I-I'm sorry, Konan, but she's right," said Natsu. "We can go again another time."

"*gasp* And I thought you were my friend!" gasped Konan sarcastically.

"N-no! You still are my friend but-"

"Natsu, he was just joking," replied Mia.

"Oh."

"Stupid little tattletale," muttered Konan annoyed.

* * *

_Mt. Bristle B1F _

"So, here we are again. This is probably the second time we've been here," quoted Konan as he and his team were trying to find the stairs.

"So, what are the job requests and the outlaw requests?" asked Natsu.

"Let's see...in this floor, we have to find some Pokemon named Cyndaquil and give...her a Red Gummi, and that's it for this floor. Hey, are Gummis like Apples?"

"Yeah, but they're more like candy or quick snacks to munch on," explained Natsu. And they all come in different colors and efefcts. Like, a Green Gummi is good for a Bug-Type, and a Blue Gummi is good for Water-Types!"

"So, if I ate a Blue Gummi, I'll get stronger?" asked Konan.

"Um...in a way, yes. But only your stats."

"Do we even have a Red Gummi?" asked Mia suddenly.

"Huh?"

"I said, do we even have a Red Gummi? Because I don't."

"Let me check mine..." Soon, Natsu and Konan checked through their Treasure Bags and found no Red Gummi, or even a single piece of Gummi. "Nope," both boys said.

"Then, how are we supposed to complete this mission when we don't have one?"

"Wait! I researched and memorized the list of items that were recently found in Mt. Bristle over the years," replied Natsu intelligently.

"Wait, they actually have a list of what kind of items are in Mt. Bristle?" asked Konan stunned.

"Yes! There are Oran Berries, Oren Berries, Pecha Berrries, Rawst Berries, Cheri Berries-"

"Ok! Could you get to the point! Are there Gummis there?"

"Oh! Yes there is! There are Blue, Grass, Orange, and White Gummis! Nothing else!"

"Ok, it's official. There are no Red Gummis," groaned Konan. "So, either we skip this request, or just hope that there are actually Red Gummis in Mt. Bristle."

"Even though we all know there aren't?" questioned Mia.

"...We're doomed," said Natsu, hanging his head in defeat.

"Come on, guys! We can't just give up!" encouraged Konan.

"I want it! Where is it?!" yelled an elderly woman's voice that sounds like she's in a bad mood.

"Granny, please calm down! We don't even know what you're talking about!" pleaded a male's voice.

"What was that?" asked Natsu.

"Let's go check it out!" ordered Konan, leading the way to all the shouting and pleading. Soon, Team Pokepals stopped and saw a Skitty with a Blue Bow over her Tail, a Cyndaquil with a Defence Scarf wrapped around his neck, a Shinx with a yellow bow over one ear, and a Electrike with a scar over one eye and a black scarf wrapped around his neck. All four of them were desperately trying to calm down a screaming, elderly Cyndaquil using a long rod as her walking stick.

"I demand an answer!" shouted the elderly Cyndaquil.

"Granny, please calm down!" said the Skitty.

"Hi! What are you guys doing?" asked Konan.

"K-Konan! Please don't just approach them without warning!" said Natsu.

"Who are you?" asked the Shinx in a serious tone.

"I'm Konan! An trainee in Wigglytuff's Guild!" introduced Konan, showing his Explorer Badge to her. "And these are my friends, Natsu the Chimchar, and, well, Mia's the girl over there but she's more like a rival."

"Hey! Am I not good enough to be a friend?" shouted Mia, angrily.

"So, you're also rookies from Wigglytuff's Guild?" asked the Skitty excitedly. "So are we! I'm Kitty! My team's called Team New Sunshine!"

"Hey, the name's Cynder!" said the Cyndaquil, pointing to himself.

"And I'm Thunder," introduced the Electrike.

"..." The female Shinx still hasn't said anything.

"What's wrong, Shine?" asked Kitty, worried. "Aren't you going to introduce yourself to them?"

"...I refuse," said the Shinx named Shine. "I don't trust them. They might be lying about being an exploration team."

"Um...their badges prove that they are an exploration team," pointed out Cynder.

"...Fine. I'll believe them, for now," agreed Shine. "The name's Shine."

_'Jeez, what a rude and mean girl she is,' _thought Konan. _'I'm glad I'm not friends with her.' _

"See, Shine? Your attitude is the reason why most Pokemon don't like you," said Thunder.

"...Shut up, Thunder. I don't like you!" said Shine rudely.

"Hey! I'm not the one with the big attitude around here! Why don't you just be nicer to Pokemon?" shouted Thunder.

"That's enough," said Mia calmly, walking towards Shine and Thunder. She turns to Thunder and asked, "Your name is Thunder, right?"

"Y-yeah."

"Well, what you're saying is true. Shine does seemed to be a bit rough and tough at the same time. But you're only going to make her attitude worse by forcing her to be nice."

"And how exactly am I forcing her?"

"Well, you just yelled at her right now, telling her to be nicer. She's not going to become more nicer if you continue doing that from now on. So, I suggest you be a bit kinder to her and speak softly to her."

"She's right, you know," agreed Kitty. "You always do seem impatient and easily lose your cool whenever Shine's rude. At least be patient."

"...Fine."

"And now you, Shine," said Mia, turning to Shine. "Yes, Thunder is right. Your attitude is rude and you don't seem to trust people so easily. So, I suggest that you try to be at least a bit nice to Pokemon and listen to what they have to say."

"...I'll try to."

"Wow, for the first time, Shine and Thunder seem to calm down, and it's all thanks to you!" said Cynder, surprised. "And your name was um..."

"Mia."

"Mia! Yeah!"

"I can't believe you took all of this so calmly. Man, now I totally have a different opinion of you now!" said Konan happily.

"Actually, I may not look like it, but I was mad," spoke Mia honestly.

"Really? But you didn't look mad."

"That's just what I said."

"HEY! EVERYONE STOP IGNORING ME!" shouted the elderly Cyndaquil. waving her rod around. She hit Konan right in the head.

"Ow! My head!" complained Konan. "Adn what is that rod made out of anyways?"

"Oh yeah, almost forgot about Granny," groaned Cynder. "Ugh...why do I have to be the one responsible for Granny's? It's just like dealing with my little brothers and sisters, only this time, they're not swinging around a rod that has the weight of a boulder!"

"So, what's going on?" asked Natsu.

"Well, at the guild, there were no more job requests or outlaw requests, so we decided to explore Mt. Bristle. Incidentally, we encountered Cynder's grandmother, the old lady over there," explained Thunder. "She said that she sent a request and she kept screaming for something like a baby! Only, we don't know what! Oh, and Cynder's grandmother likes to be called Granny. Anyways, even though Granny's kind and all, she has a huge temper and is so persistent! I don't even know how she got here!"

"Wait a minute..." said Konan, realizing something. "Don't tell me the Cyndaquil we had to rescue, then give a Red Gummi is..." Then, he grabbed both Natsu and Mia and forced them into a huddle, while Team New Sunshine had to comfort Granny Cyndaquil.

"Ok, why did you have to drag us like that?" asked Mia.

"Guys! That Granny is the Cyndaquil we had to rescue and deliver the Red Gummi too!" hissed Konan. "One, we don't have the Red Gummi! And two, if Kitty's team finds out that we were the ones who took all of the requests, they'll no doubt tell Chatot!"

"You mean, you took all of the requests," corrected Mia.

"Ok, how about this? Let's say that we had to do a couple of requests in Mt. Bristle and that the first is to rescue the Cyndaquil and give her the Red Gummi!" suggested Natsu.

"Excellent plan, Natsu! I knew that you were the smartest person in the team!" praised Konan, ruffling Natsu's head. After they stopped their conversation, Konan told Team New Sunshine, "Ok, so we're here in Mt. Bristle because of some requests. One of them is trying to rescue Granny and give her the Red Gummi."

"Oh! So that's what she wanted!" realized Cynder. "Red Gummis were always her favorite!" His team glanced angrily at the young Cyndaquil. "What?"

"Give feed her the Red Gummi," said Kitty.

"Ok! Here, Granny! One Red Gummi, coming right up!" said Cynder, getting a Red Gummi from his Treasure Bag and giving it to the elderly Cyndaquil, who stopped ranting.

"About time!" she said before eating. After eating, she smiled and said kindly, "Thank you dears for rescuing me and fetching me my Red Gummi. Now, I'd like to get out of this place, please."

_'How can one person change from completely ballastic to a kind hearted person?' _thought Team Pokepals sweatdropping as they watched Granny being teleported after pressing onto Cynder's Exploration Badge.

"Oh! I have an idea!" exclaimed Konan. "How about we join up together temporarily? You've got nothing to do, and we've got so many requests! You guys could pass the time by hanging out with us!"

"I agree!" said Kitty cheerfully. "I'm bored anyways!"

"Bring it on! The more we explore, the more enemies we'll encounter so that we can grow stronger!" shouted Cynder happily, throwing a punch in the air.

"I don't care what any of you think. If we're going, I suppose we have to go," sighed Thunder.

"No, I disagree," spoke Shine.

"You still don't trust us even after we showed you our Exploration Badges?" asked Natsu.

"Yes. I'll believe the fact that you are rookies. However, I won't trust you any further," said Shine. "Especially her." Shine points to Mia, who raises her eyebrow in confusion.

"Sorry about her!" apologized Kitty. "It's just that Shine doesn't trust others she meets for the first time so easily."

"...Do you honestly believe that I'm going to trust you three?" questioned Shine.

"I do," replied Konan simply. "For starters, you guys don't have anything else to do, right? So, instead of going back to the guild and sit there, twiddling your fingers, it would be more fun to help us out a bit. We even got outlaw requests. The more the merrier, right? So, that's it. That's why i thought we'd cooperate, even if it's for a while. Ah, but forget it. We're going to keep following you guys for today even if you say no."

"Hey! When did we agree on this!" shouted Mia. "Me and Natsu didn't even agree!"

"...Are you the cocky one? Yoru brought on the proposal, but you're the one who's going to choose?" asked Shine to Konan.

"You got that right. Besides, you may not know it, but we fought an outlaw named Drowzee, and a few days ago, we fought a really strong and famous outlaw named Tyranitar, and SURVIVED," reasoned Konan. "So, what do you say?"

Everyone turned to Shine, who now had a decision to make. Shine knew what to do. Mt. Bristle has been crawling with many dangerous Pokemon lately, and if they were to let down their guard, even for a minute, they'll be easily ambushed and it might cost their life. Shine and her team can't handle being ambushed, like in a Monster House. But they might stand a chance if more allies, especially from Wigglytuff's Guild, joined them, even if Shine didn't trust them. But-

"...Alright. I'll believe you three for the time being," answered Shine. "But it'll be under one condition. I'll accept your help and trust you temporarily under one condition."

"What is it? Do you want us to give you half of our food during dinnertime for a week?" asked Konan.

"No. Even though we're cooperating and completing requests, we share the requests' rewards fifty fifty if we complete them."

"What?!" whine Team Pokepals, shocked.

"Whoa, Shine. I didn't know you had such a sly personality," admitted Cynder, surprised. "Now, I totally have a different opinion of you now."

"I totally agree with Shine!" spoke up Kitty with a michevious look on her face. "In order to form an alliance with us, you have to agree to that term!"

"By the way, how many requests do you have?" asked Thunder.

"Six requests, three are Job requests and two are Outlaw requests," answered Natsu.

"Huh, that's weird. Because the last time I went to the Job Bulletin Board and the Outlaw Board, there were three job requests and two outlaw requests," said Thunder suspiciously. "I wonder why..."

_'Oh shit!' _thought Konan, realizing what that meant. _'Please don't let him figure it out! Please oh please!' _

"Oh, that's because Konan took all of the requests," revealed Natsu.

"What?!" shouted Team New Sunshine.

"Natsu, you idiot!" shouted Konan, grabbing Natsu by the scarf collar and shaking him.

"Hey! Let go of Natsu!" ordered Mia, grabbing Konan's arm.

"So it was you guys who took all the requests! That's a violation to the rules! You aren't supposed to take all of them! Other Exploration Teams need them too!" said Thunder.

"Technically, Konan took them. We didn't agree," said Natsu.

"How about this? We'll give you all the rewards that are in the requests in exchange for you guys don't tell anyone that Konan took all the requests for both the Job Bulletin Board and the Outlaw Board," requested Mia. "If possible, could you also add that we, Team Pokepals, also helped you guys out when you get handed the rewards?"

"Huh?" questioned Konan, shocked.

"Sure!" agreed Kitty. "And yeah, you'll also receive credit! After all, you're helping us after all!"

"...I agree to your terms," said Thunder.

"Yeah! Plus, we get all the rewards! Man, we are lucky today!" cheered Cynder.

'...Is there anything else you like to tell us that's involved in our alliance?" asked Shine.

"No," said Natsu.

"Then I agree as well."

"Hey! I didn't agree!" shouted Konan.

"Because you started it all, I had to do this deal," said Mia. "And besides, it's six votes for and one vote against. You're outmatched."

"...Fine. I agree too."

"First, we have to shake hands to form the alliance," replied Kitty, offering her paw.

"Alright. Easy enough." Konan took Kitty's paw and shook it, thus starting the alliance. (Team Sunshine and its teammates are all owned by an author called Legendary Fairy)

* * *

_Mt. Bristle B2F _

Team Pokepals and Team New Sunshine walk through the seond floor of Mt. in such a large group together would attract a lot of attention, especially from enemy Pokemon, but it was at least better than getting ambushed.

Konan and Cynder must have taken a liking to each other since they keep chatting to each other and laughing. Shine and Mia are next to each other, but they keep on walking silently, not speaking to one another. Natsu was happily chatting with Kitty and Thunder.

Then, Konan asked, "Hey, not during missions, but maybe we could all hang out sometime."

"No."

Suddenly, the air in Mt. Brsitle grew cold. Konan, Natsu, Kitty, and Cynder, who until now knew that Shine doesn't trust others easily, could only gape silently.

"W-what are you talking about, Shine?" sputtered Kitty. "That was rude, even for a joke."

"Kitty, I am not joking," replied Shine seriously and calmly. "I meant what I said."

"W-what are you saying!" exclaimed Cynder. "You only just met Mia and now you already hate her!"

"No, I don't hate her. But I dislike her. She and I are completely incompatible. You know there's no way we could get along, right Mia?"

"No, not at all," replied Mia. "We may be different, but I'm sure I can restrain myself.

"What's wrong with you, Shine?" asked Thunder, confused and angry. "Sure you don't trust others, but you never disliked a person this much before."

"Yeah I have," corrected Shine. "Just like I dislike you more than Kitty and Cynder, I dislike Mia."

"So basically, you don't like Mia more than me?"

"That's right."

Everyone else besides Mia, Shine, and Thunder were stunned and stayed out of the conversation. Looks like these were matters that only those three Electric-Types could handle on their own.

* * *

_Mt. Bristle B3F _

"HELP! HELP! HELP!" screamed a high-pitched voice.

"What? What happened?" asked Kitty.

"According to these requests, it seems that a Pichu and a Totodile needed to be rescue here in this floor," said Konan, looking through the request papers.

Cynder shrugged, "Oh, that's not so bad-"

"-And there's an outlaw that's a Rhydon."

"...Oh, besides Konan, we're screwed," said Kitty uneased.

"Why? What's wrong?" asked Natsu.

"I heard Rhydon's a really strong Ground/Rock Type. Yes, Konan may be able to deal with him, but the rest of us are are either Fire or Electric Type. We're at a disadvantage. And Konan can't handle that outlaw all by his own. Rhydon's dealted with Water Types too and survived!"

"Oh..." Team Pokepals said.

"I have a plan!" suggested Konan. "Ok, so Mia, Thunder, and Shine go ahead and distract Rhydon, while the rest of us go ahead and attack next once Rhydon has a huge opening! I'll be the one dealing with the huge attacks, while you guys just keep him from attacking me!"

"Basically, that would me all of us except you distracting him, and then you delivering the final blow, right?" questioned Konan.

"Yeah!"

"But wait," interrupted Thunder. "All of us can't just distract him at the same time. Someone's gotta support Konan and help attack as well."

"Also, there's more," said Natsu. "I heard that some Pokemon, like Rhydon, has a special ability called Lightningrod. It allows Pokemon ho has this ability to draw in Electric-Type moves and neutralize the effects. So, Mia, Shine, and Thunder can't attack."

"But that doesn't mean we can't use normal attacks like Tackle," replied Thunder.

"Man! I wish that Rhydons were Grass-Types or Ice-Types!" complained Cynder. "That way, we Fire Types would have an advantage and actually take the spotlight for once!"

"Hey! Today I get the spotlight!" said Konan.

"Well, I'm going to be the first Cyndaquil to finish off a Rhydon!" argued Cynder.

"Um...actually guys," spoke up Natsu. "There are other Fire Types who defeated Rock and Ground Types before-"

"SHUT UP!" shouted Konan and Cynder before turning back to each other.

"I'm the one who's going to beat Rhydon! Besides, I'm a Water Type and you're a Fire Type, so I can easily kick your ass!" argued Konan.

"Yeah, well Fire Types beated Water Types before too, you know!" argued back Cynder.

"Unlike you, CINDY."

"My name is Cynder!"

"Whatever, Cindy!"

"Ugh! Why you-"

"Someone help!" the high-pitched voice pleaded again.

"Oh man! We forgot!" shouted Thunder.

"Everyone! I can sense someone approaching! Let's hide and then ambush the enemy!" suggested Mia, hiding behind a huge rock.

"Wait, I thought we weren't supposed to ambush the enemy!" said Konan.

"Change of plans!" ordered Kitty, agreeing with Mia's plan. "Now hurry up!" Very quickly, Konan and Cynder climbed up a tree and sat on one of the big strong branches, which the two were pushing and squirming to get a better seat. Thunder and Kitty hid behind the tree Konan and Cynder were on top. Natsu quickly hid behind the huge rock with Mia, and Shine used Dig to hide herself underground.

About a few seconds later, a large Rhydon was seen walking around, with two tied up Pokemon, a Pichu and a Totodile. The tied up Pokemon had another rope attached to their bounds each, which the two ropes were being held by the Rhydon, thus he was forcing them along.

"Come on, hurry up!" ordered the Rhydon.

"Yes, sir," muttered both the captives, picking up their pace.

"Ok, Natsu. I'm going to go out there and distract the Rhydon as long as I can. If you can, please back me up," whispered Mia.

"W-what?! But that wasn't part of the plan!" whispered Natsu.

"I know! But while I distract the Rhydon, the others will have a chance to free the captives, and then we'll attack!"

"I...see. I think that's a good plan."

"Thunder," whispered Kitty. "I'm going to go distract Rhydon for a while. In the meantime, you go and rescue the captives."

"But, you're no match against Rhydon!" hissed Thunder.

"So aren't you!" whispered Kitty. "Thanks to your quick speed, you can rescue the captives easily without Rhydon noticing, as soon as I make him let go of those ropes of course. Don't worry! I'll be fine!"

'...Alright then. I'll agree on the plan."

_'Alright, here's the plan,' _thought Shine, who was underground and had dug out a small hole to see what was going on. _'The moment he is fully ditracted, I'll use Tackle on Rhydon, grab the captives, and use Dig again! Ok, I'll do it in the count of one...two-' _

**SWOOSH! **"NOW, CINDY! ATTACK WITH ALL YOUR MIGHT!" shouted Konan, jumping off the branch. "BUBBLEBEAM!"

"MY NAME IS CYNDER!" yelled Cynder, also jumping off the branch. "Ember!" Just like when Konan combined his Bubblebeam with Natsu's Ember, this was the same result. Blue sparks appeared around the bubbles and the embers formed a whirlwind with the bubbles appearing in it. The combined Ember and Bubblebeam hit the Rhydon, who had his guard down.

"Gaaaaa!" shouted Rhydon, in pain as the combination attack hit him, making him let go of the ropes that were keeping the two captives.

"Those idiots!" shouted Mia, rushing into the scene, filled with electricity.

"Wait, Mia!" called Natsu, running after her.

"This wasn't part of the plan!" shouted Kitty, running forward.

"Worse alliance ever!" hollered Thunder, following behind.

"Natsu! Help me get the captives first!" pleaded Mia.

"GRRRR! I WON'T LET YOU!" roared Rhydon, raising up his arm, preparing to attack Mia. Realizing that Mia was in danger, Natsu runs with all of his strength out of desperation to save Mia. There was no way that Natsu could do anything against the outlaw, since he is taller, stronger, and has the advantages against him. So the least he could do is push Mia away and save her from Rhydon.

"HAMMER ARM!" One of Rhydon's forearms glowed white and slams-

**PUNCH! SWOOSH! CRASH! **The next second came quickly like the wind. Yes, Natsu made it on time to save Mia, but as a result, he was hit by the attack Rhydon performed and was sent flying towards a tree.

"...?!" There were shocked voices from everyone, including Rhydon.

"...Why?" muttered Rhydon, shocked.

"...! DAMN YOU!" screamed Mia. Without knowing the words, she shouted, "QUICK ATTACK!" Mia suddenly disappeared, then reappears in front of Rhydon in the air and tackles him. It didn't do much effect, but it still injured him, even a little.

Thunder and Kitty realized that Rhydon was now completely defenceless and shouted, "Now, Kitty! Here's our chance! Iron Tail!"

"Ok! Iron Tail!" Together, with both combintations of Iron Tail, the two teammates' tails glowed white and both of them hit at the same time. Since both of them are high leveled Explorers, and that Rhydon is a Rock Type, it was super effective.

"RRRRRRRRRRGGGHHHH!" yelled Rhydon.

When Mia landed at the ground, she looked at her hands and thought amazingly, _'Whoa...without me realizing it, I performed Quick Attack! Does that mean I leveled up? Wait, let me check...it looks like only Growl was erased. But at least I have a useful move now. Wait a minute! Natsu!' _

"Haaaaaa!" cried Shine, slamming her head towards Rhydon's face after emerging from underground.

"Ow! My face!" shouted Rhydon, clutching his face.

"Shine! Thunder! Get the kids out of here!" ordered Kitty, watching Thunder untie the captives.

"Right!" agreed Thunder and Shine as they were teleporting the Pichu and the Totodile out of the Dungeon and inside Wigglytuff's Guild by making them press their Badges.

"Natsu! Natsu! Are you alright?" asked Mia, running to the injured Natsu's side.

"Ow...I'm sorry, Mia...I was...too reckless..." whispered Natsu, too injured to even move.

"Please don't speak! I'll give you an Oran Berry now!" commanded Mia, shoving an Oran Berry into Natsu's mouth. After swallowing the Oran Berry, Natsu stood up, completely healed.

"Thank you, Mia! I feel a lot better!" thanked Natsu.

"...Natsu, I perfer if you didn't do that again," said Mia sternly.

"B-but why? I mean, I'm sure not going to be doing that anytime soon, but you were in danger!"

"I was aware of that. But I would just be injured, that's all. And you almost got killed! Please, promise me you won't ever do that again!" pleaded Mia.

Seeing the pleaded look on Mia's face made Natsu guilty and ashamed, so he nodded and promised, "Ok, I promise not to do something that reckless again. But at least be careful."

Mia nodded in agreement. "Alright. I can do that."

"Konan! Cynder! Let's finish this once and for all!" shouted Kitty.

Konan and Cynder understood what Kitty meant and nodded. "You got it!" both of them shouted.

"Ice Beam!" A light blue ball forms in Kitty's mouth, and then fires light blue beams from the ball towards Rhydon.

"Ember!"

"Bubblebeam!" The three signature moves fired at the same time in different directions, hitting Rhydon. Rhydon, who was completely defenceless, felt the full power of the attacks and after being hit, he was finally defeated and fainted.

"We...we did it..." panted Konan. "...WE DID IT! WOO HOO!"

"Yeah, man!" cheered Cynder, high-fiving Konan.

After tying up Rhydon and senting him back to the guild, Kitty turned to Konan and CYnder and said with a kind smile, "Now, you boys must be punished!~"

"Wait, what?" echoed both boys.

"That's right," agreed Mia. "Because of your reckless behavior, you almost got yourselves killed."

"But we never got killed!" argued both Konan and Cynder.

"Is there no end to your fun, you little boys? And here I thought that you were were finally mature enough NOT to amubush the enemy all of a sudden," tisked Shine.

"BUE WE NEVER F***KING GOT KILLED!"

"So, as a punishment, we're forcing you to eat Kitty's cooking!" said Thunder.

Cynder's face went pale and he screamed, "NOOOOOOOOOOO!"

"Why? Whaat's wrong with her cooking, man?" asked Konan.

"Here you go!" said Kitty cheerfully, giving them a small basket of soft colorful muffins.

"Oh! They're poffins!" exclaimed Natsu.

"Poffins? Don't you mean, muffins?" wondered Konan.

"No, poffins. They're all in different colors each. The difference is that they can increase a bit of your stats, but it depends."

"Cool! Then I'm eating one!" declared Konan, taking a poffin.

"Now, you too, Cynder," ordered Kitty.

"Urk-! ...Alright."

* * *

_Mt. Bristle B4F _

"W-w-w-w-w-what kind of P-poffins were those?!" exclaimed Konan, gasping after drinking water so many times. He and Cynder were near a small lake, drinking water from it.

"You should have waited for me to finish my sentence, you know," said Cynder, annoyed.

"W-who knew that her poffins had lots of different effects? And they're even worse than Oren Berries!"

"I know, right? But you shouldn't mention that in front of Kitty. You might hurt her feelings."

"Alright, alright...So, how many times have you guys been eating her cooking-"

"21 times so far."

"Holy hell, really?"

"And most of those times, I had to use the bathroom."

"Are you two done yet?" asked Shine impatiently.

"Yeah, we just finished," said Konan.

"Oh, by the way, we decided to give you, Mia, and Natsu each one TM," said Thunder.

"What's a TM?" asked Konan.

"Konan, a TM, which stands for Technical Machine, is a sort of item that teaches a Pokemon a new move, and it can be used once on a Pokemon before it magically disappears," explained Konan. "Mini has a shop full of TMs too."

"What? Really? I thought he was Gemi's assistant or something!" said Konan, shocked.

"Um...who's Gemi and Mini?" asked Thunder.

"Gemi is the green Kecleon in the Kecleon Shop. Mini is the purple Kecleon, his other brother," explained Natsu.

"Oh! So you guys were the ones who named them!"

"About time someone gave them names," ensured Cynder. "There was this one time when I forgot they didn't even have names, and I just kept calling them, Mr. Green Lizard and Mr. Purple Lizard. It was really awkward."

"So, anyways," said Konan, trying to change the subject. "We don't even have to level up to get TMs?"

"That's right," said Kitty.

"Awesome! Gimme! Gimme!"

"Alright, this TM is called Pluck. Pluck is a Flying Type move that inflicts damage. In addition, is a Pokemon was holding an item, you could easily take it away," explained Kitty. "But be careful. Once you have four moves, you have to replace a move in order to obtain Pluck."

"That's just crazy! Why couldn't we have more than four moves instead of just four?"

"I don't know. Anyways, this is yours. Just put it on top of your head and say which move you want to forget."

"Seems easy enough." Konan took the TM from Kitty and placed it on his head before stating, "I want to forget the move...um...oh! Water Sport! That move's never useful to me anyways!" The TM started glowing, then magically disappeared right before everyone's eyes. "Yahoo! I did it! Now, to test my new move! Pluck!"

Konan's beak glows white and he attacks a boulder with it. Unfortunely, his beak got stuck on the boulder.

Kitty sighed before saying, "I'm going to go help him."

"I'll help too," offered Shine, following her.

"...Ok! Here's a TM for you!" continued Cynder, handing Natsu a TM. "That's the TM, Will-O-Wisp! You see, it-"

"I know it," interrupted Natsu. "It only burns the enemy. This is fine. I don't like hurting others anyways. Thank you."

"Finally, you," said Thunder, handing Mia a TM. "That's the TM, Thunderbolt. I noticed in the previous battles that you could only use a Thundershock. So, I thought about giving you this to upgrade yourself."

"Oh, thanks Thunder," said Mia. "This will definitely help me a lot."

Once Mia and Natsu already forgotten their moves, Thundershock and Taunt, and replaced them with their new TM moves, Konan's beak finally broke loose from the boulder, and the two teams went forward.

* * *

_Mt. Bristle B5F _

"I can't believe they split us up into separate groups!" complained Konan with Cynder following behind him. Since their last request was to capture the last outlaw, and that the outlaw happened to be somewhere in the floor, everyone quickly decided to go in groups.

Of course, they weren't going to choose randomly, seeing how Konan was complaining about which member was to go with him, Shine deciding to go solo, and when Mia pleaded to stay with Natsu. So, they decided to write down their names in paper and place them in a bag so they can choose randomly. Natsu was with Shine, Mia was with Thunder and Kitty, and Konan was with Cynder.

The outlaw they were supposed to capture was a Pokemon named Ditto, who is called the Transforming Pokemon, because he can transform into any kind of Pokemon. However, his weaknesses are that his move, Transform, contains 1 PP, so he gets one use only, and the abilities when he transforms into a random Pokemon varies. So, that's why everyone split up into groups.

Meanwhile, Natsu and Shine were walking around, not saying a single word to each other. They didn't need to, for Shine wouldn't talk to Natsu, and Natsu was too nervous to talk to her. Then, Natsu asked Shine, "So, did you find-"

"Don't talk to me."

"Ok."

Back to Mia, Kitty, and Thunder, they were doing fine. Well, almost fine. Mia found out that Kitty was too talkactive and Thunder wasn't even helping! Kitty was talking about her favorite things, about future boyfriends, about having kids, and other girly things.

Then, Kitty asked Mia, "So, are you interested in a certain someone?"

Mia's eye twitched, but she remained calm and said, "That's the second time someone other than Konan asked me that. And no, I'm not interested in someone."

"Ooh! Ooh! Is it that Natsu person? Yeah, he is pretty sweet and kind hearted, but timid."

"No, it's not Natsu. He's my adoptive older brother."

"..What?" asked Thunder finally.

"Oh...I didn't-I mean-"

"No worries. You didn't know," ensured Mia. "But, if you are interested in Natsu, you have to go through me first, and I assure you, I won't hold back in fighting." To prove her point, her red cheeks sparked with electricity, and she was surrounded by a dark aura, making both Thunder and Kitty shiver in fear.

"Oh don't worry about that!" said Kitty. "I don't have a crush on Natsu! Sure he's cute and all, but he's just not my type!"

"Then that's fine too."

As they continued wlaking, Kitty silently sighed in relief and thought, _'Man! I really am glad I don't like Natsu in that kind of way!' _

"Hey, so like, how we supposed to know where Ditto is?" asked Cynder.

"What do you mean?" questioned Konan. "According to Natsu, Ditto is supposed to be some small pink blob. That's easy to locate."

"Yeah, I know. But what if Ditto transform into a Pokemon that lives in Mt. Bristle? Or worse, us!"

"Nah, you're just worrying too much. If he transformed into a Pokemon that lives here, we can take him! Besides, he only has the move Transform! And it only has one use! Besides, we're all in separate groups with a few people! As long as we stick together, there's no way he'll get us-AHHHHH!"

"Konan-AAAHHHHH!" Both boys were suddenly pushed off the edge of the cliff, but Cynder managed to catch Konan's hand and grab hold of the ledge at the same time.

"Oh my God, we're going to die!" screamed Konan.

"Konan, stop screaming-"

"I can't believe we're actually going to die without fufilling any of ours dreams! Like hitting Chatot in the head with his own mallet!"

"Konan, plea-wait, he actually owns a mallet?"

"Yeah, Mia told me she got it from Loudred who got it from Chatot who owned the mallet in the first place. But it doesn't matter! WE'RE GOING TO DIE!"

"Oh, how sweet. Two close friends about to die together. Such sorrow and friendship," said a low voice. Konan and Cynder looked up to see a pink blob.

"Ditto!" shouted Cynder.

"A pink blob!" Everyone turned to Konan, who shrugged. "What? It's true."

"...Anyways," spoke Ditto. "You are correct. I'm Ditto, the outlaw that can transform into anyone and anything!"

"How are you even here?" asked Cynder. "And what did you do to Kitty and the others?"

"Oh, so there are others, huh? How amusing. Guess I'll transform to make them confuse and fight each other."

"Nice going, Cynder! You just told him that there were more than us, idiot!" said Konan.

"Oh, shut up! And-"

"I'm a woman," spoke Ditto.

"...What?" asked Konan and Cynder, making sure the heard right.

"I said that I am a woman."

"...WHAT?!"

"B-b-but the reports specifically-"

"Oh, that;s because I always keep my voice low. People can mistake me for that."

"Seriously? I thought Dittos were genderless!" said Konan.

"...You realize that you will die a quick death for that, don't you?" growled the female Ditto.

"Ditto! I don't care how powerful you are or if you're male or female!" stated Cynder. "But before that, we're going to climb up and then beat you up!"

"Um, Cynder-"

"I'm not finished. THEN, we're going to capture you and take you back to the guild and then get back to our original lives! What do you say about that, you old hag?"

"*yawn* Are you done yet?" asked Ditto bored. "I've heard that speech so many times that it's tired me out. Nice try, hot shots, but by the time that you climb back up here, I'll be already gone. Don't worry, I won't kill you. I'll just leave you hanging. In the meantime, I'll also deceive your friends by changing into one of you and then eliminate them on my own."

"But, we heard that you can only use Transform once and that's it!" shouted Konan. "Don't tell me that was also a lie-!"

"No, you're right," said Ditto. "Yes, I can only use it once. But have you heard of Max Elixirs, boy?"

"! Don't tell me!" gasped Cynder. "Oh wait, you got only a few, right? Well, our teams can handle it a couple of transformations."

"Oh, teams huh? Does that mean you two are Explorers? That explains so much! But unfortunely, you got one thing wrong. Yes, I do have Max Elixirs, several so far so there's almost no limit to my Transform move!"

"...Oh shit," cursed Cynder.

"What's a Max Elixir?" asked Konan.

"A Max Elixir restores all of your PP completely! But it would be a waste on a Ditto considering that they only have one PP," explained Cynder.

"...Oh man."

"Now then, you'll slowly join your friends in the afterlife soon," crackled Ditto. "After I used Transform to transform into many powerful Pokemon to eliminate them!"

"Ok, hacks! I call hacks!" accused Konan.

"What? Hacks?" asked Ditto.

"You totally hacked your supply of Max Elixirs."

"What makes you say that?"

"How else would you use Transform into your ugly transformations if you don't have your endless supply of Max Elixirs? That's cheating!"

"You realize that you are going to die a low and painful death for insulting me."

"Konan! If you don't want us to fall off, apologize!" pleaded Cynder.

"Oh don't worry. Lke I said, I won't be the one causing your deaths," ensured Ditto. "Well, see you later, chumps." Then, Ditto left.

Meanwhile, Kitty was still chatting to Mia, much to Mia's annoyance, and Thunder was walking silently when they encountered Natsu and Shine. "Hey guys! How are you? Find Ditto yet?" asked Kitty.

"...How do we know you're not Ditto?" questioned Shine, getting ready to fight.

"Well, at least she's Shine. That just proves that she's not Ditto," said Thunder.

"AAAAAHHHHHH!" screamed a voice that came from nowhere.

"It came from there!" pointed out Natsu.

"Yeah, I can hear screams too!" agreed Thunder. "Let's hurry!" When all five of them finally arrived at the scene, they saw a small Starly, cowering in fear.

"Hey! Are you alright?" asked Natsu, not hestitating to run towards the Starly.

Thunder, Shine, and Mia sensed something wrong and shouted, "Natsu! Wait! Stop!"

However, Natsu was too late to hear their warnings, when the Starly stood up with a mischevious grin on her face and glowed white. It turned out to be Ditto, and she was drinking a Max Elixir!

"Oh no!" shouted Natsu, trying to get away.

"Transform!" shouted Ditto gleefully. She glowed white, and her shape started to change quickly. Now, she transformed into a Weavile and shouted, "Metal Claw!"

**SLASH! **The transformed Weavile claws glowed white and she tried to slash at Natsu, only fro him to be shielded by Mia. There were claw marks from Mia's back, and blood flowing from them.

"No-!" grunted Thunder. With dashing speed, he ran towards Mia and said, "Hey! You okay? Hey!"

"M-mia...MIA!" screamed Natsu, tears flowing from his eyes.

"What are you standing there for, idiot?! Hurry up and help!" shouted Shine, charging for Weavile. "Spark!" Shine's body becomes surrounded by blue electricity and she tackles Weavile.

"R-right!" agreed Natsu. He helped pick up Mia and let her lay on Thunder's back. Thunder then dashed back to Kitty, who had medical items ready. Natsu turned his attention back to Weavile, who was clashing with Shine. "Ember!"

"Tch-!" The red embers managed to hit her and burn her arm a bit. Though she had transformed into a Weavile, she still had the weaknesses of a Weavile, like being weak against Fire Types of course. She glowed white and transformed back to a Ditto after being a bit far away from the two Exploration Teams.

"Hmm, I must admit, I didn't think straight when I fought all of you," admitted Ditto, swallowing a Max Elixir. "But you are fast and strong, I'll admit. However, you won't be here for long once I transform again!"

"Where are Konan and Cynder?" asked Kitty, who finished healing Mia's wounds and bandaging them up a bit.

"Oh, those two I encountered? They're 'hanging' onto their lives, but I highly doubt that they'll be coming here anytime soon," answered Ditto in a cold voice.

"Then, that would mean that you-" started Mia.

"No, I didn't kill them. They were just hanging near the edge of a cliff. But there is no problem with that. They were going to be at death's door soon anyways. All that reamins is-yes, if I eliminate all five of you at once, there will be no more worries for me."

"Mia, I managed to banadge your wounds and heal them ompletely. It'll take about a day for the pain to go away," whispered Kitty.

"Thank you, Kitty," thanked Mia, standing up, only to fele a little bit of pain.

"Don't push yourself. We can't let you do that act again."

"Right, sorry."

"And besides, if you have scars at your back, no guy will go out with you!~" grinned Kitty.

"...Are you still going on that, even in a battle?"

"So, those two are still alive?" asked Shine.

"Perhaps. But in my opinion,they won't be around long," said Ditto.

_'You two better hang in there! Especially, you, Cynder!' _thought Thunder.

"AAHHHHH! I CAN'T HOLD ON, KONAN!" yelled Cynder who was still clutching to the edge of the cliff. "I can feel my hands slipping!"

"No! No! Don't let go, dude!" shouted Konan.

"I can't! I feel them slipping! I'm letting go! Oh no! This is terrible! We're going to die! I can't...I can't..."/ "No! No! Dude! Don't let go! Oh God no! No if you do, I'll never get the experience of hitting Chatot with his mallet! Oh God! No!" shouted Cynder and Konan, speaking in different sentences.

"Hey, Konan!"

"What?"

"Just kidding!...Ok, now seriously, my fingers are slowly slipping!"

Meanwhile, Ditto had transformed into an Onix and was now attacking the five Explorers with her Rock-Type moves. "Sand Tomb!" She brought her large rocky tail down to the ground, kicking up dirt around the five.

"Everyone! Cover your eyes!" shouted Kitty, closing her eyes. But due to that action, Onix took the advantage.

"Rock Throw!" Onix slams her tail at the ground, making rocks fall towards the five Explorers.

"GAAAHHHH!" all five screamed at the impact. They fell to the ground, but they still got up.

"Really? You're still resisting? Even after I can transform and you don't have the advantages, you're still willing to try?" asked Onix.

"It's called, 'Not giving up,'" replied Mia, on her feet.

"I agree," agreed Thunder. "I won't give up until you're finally down."

"I-I'm doing everything in my power to defeat you!" encouraged Natsu.

"As much as I hate teaming up, I have no choice," muttered Shine.

"Le'ts do this!" said Kitty.

"Hmm...how futile. However, I will praise your courage," praised Onix. "But without that Piplup or Cyndaquil by your side, how will you stand a chance? It's true that Piplup may effect me, but I highly doubt he and his friend will be here."

_'Konan, Cynder, you better make it out alive!' _thought Mia.

"Ninety five mallets that hit on the wall, ninety-five mallets that hit!~" sang Konan. "Take one down, pass it around, ninety-four mallets that hit on the wall! Cynder, you're not even singing!"

"I'm busy...saving our lives!" said Cynder, his body trembling as he was still hanging onto his and Konan's lives.

"Hey, Cynder!"

"What?!"

"In the next few hours, the sun will rise!"

"What the f**k does that mean?!"

"I don't know!"

"Dig!" shouted Onix, who was still continuing the battle. She had risen from underground and attacked all five at once. The five all yelled in pain, but were determined not to give up. They were making very few progress so far, and their attacks weren't effective much due to Mia, Shine, and Thunder being Electric-Types, Natsu a Fire-Type, and Kitty a Normal-Type. However, sometimes Ditto's transformation wears off and she had to use a lot of Max Elixirs to contiue her transformation. If they kept forcing her to keep using Max Elixirs, she'll soo run out!

"Thunderbolt!" cried out Mia and Thunder.

"Ember!" shouted Natsu,

"Spark!" yelled Shine.

"Ice Beam!" hollered Kitty. All five special attacks hit Onix at the same time, making her scream in pain. The five combined attacks now had a bigger effect on her, but it still wasn't enough to beat her.

"Ha...ha...let's try again!" panted Mia, readying herself.

"Right!" agreed the others.

"As if I'd let you!" shouted Onix. "Stone Edge!" Her temporarily rock body started glowing white and multiple orbs of white started floating in the air. The orbs started to take the shape of a circle and spin around in midair. The white orbs started turning into stones and fired at everyone else.

"Shine!" shouted Thunder, standing in front of Mia and Natsu. "Protect!"

"Fine! Protect!" cried out Shine, in front of Kitty. Everyone was surrounded by two green barriers, protecting the approaching stones.

Then, Ditto's transformation wore off, and she was back in her real form. "Damn!" She got out another Max Elixir. "Got two left...I'll finish this battle in one blo-"

"Pluck!" shouted a mysterious voice. All of a sudden, Ditto's Max Elixir was out of sight and Ditto clutched at her injured arm. Due to her injuries, she almost passed out due to that surprise attack.

"Looking for this?" asked Konan, who arrived at the scene, and was carrying the Max Elixir.

"Konan! You're here!" cried Natsu, relieved.

"But where' Cynder?" asked Thunder. Konan pointed up with his thumb, and everyone but Ditto looked up. Cynder was in the air, falling down towards Ditto.

"Flame Wheel!" Cynder ignites flames on his back, and had already somersaulting in the air, rolling around. **CRASH! **His Flame Wheel had hit Ditto from above, and he jumped down and rolled around the ground a bit before screeching to a stop. After being hit by the Flame Wheel, Ditto finally fainted.

"Yeah! We did it!" cheered both Konan and Cynder, high-fiving each other.

"Whew...looks like you two make a good team," sighed Mia in relief.

Konan turned to the two teams and tried to explain, "Look, we were late because-"

"It's ok," ensured Thunder. "We know. Ditto told us everything."

"Oh? She did?"

"Wait, she?" echoed Kitty.

"Yeah, didn't you know? Ditto is a girl," supported Cynder.

"Huh?! Wait, but the rumors were told that-"

"Ditto lowered her voice so people would assume she was a he."

"Oh..."

"Can we just hurry up and go back to the guild now?" asked Shine after she and Mia had tied up Ditto in a...odd way.

"Oh, right!" agreed Kitty.

"Man! I sure am wondering what they're going to serve for dinner today!" said Konan, excited.

"I heard it's just going to be more delicious food," answered Natsu.

"Really? Sweet!"

* * *

Once Team Pokepals and Team New Sunshine finally arrived at the guild with the captured Ditto, lots of guild members were surprised at how dirty and bloody the team members were. After Officer Magneszone came to pick up both the outlaws they captured and give Team New Sunshine the rewards, Chatot came and gave the two teams a lecture.

However, he was grateful that they were able to team up and fight together. But he still yelled at them for showing up all bloody and dirty, even though they no longer had any injuries and had healed their injuries back at Mt. Bristle. So, the teams suggested that they team uup another time before they cleaned themselves, had dinner together, and went to sleep for a brand new day.

* * *

**Hope: Whew! Finally made another chapter today! It took me two ful days to finally complete this! **

**Konan: At least I was able to shine a bit in this chapter!**

**Hope: Satisfied? I decided to make another chapter because I got a bit of free time! Well, I won't make another chapter till much much later, since I do have other work. Well, see you guys!**


	9. Scary stories and an awesome song!

**Hope: Alright! Now, it's time to write some more chapters! And I've got lots of ideas!**

**Konan: Well, they better be good!**

**Hope: Oh they are! And funny too! Now do the disclaimer before we start!**

**Konan: Mage of Hope does not own Pokemon, only the Pokemon Company does! **

* * *

"UP AND AT 'EM! IT'S MORNING!" Loudred yelled, running into Team Pokepals dormittory. All three members were sound asleep, aside from Konan's loud snoring. Honestly, Loudred could never figure out how Mia and Natsu could sleep through that. Heck, it might be as loud as his voice!

Very carefully, Loudred climbed up the bunk bed that Konan and Natsu were sharing, with Konan being at the top, and shook him while trying not to get a mouthful of a pillow...again. After a few more minutes, Loudred gets irritated and yells, "WAKE UP! IT'S TIME FOR OUR MORNING ROUTINE!"

**PUNCH! **When Konan woke up and stretched his arms, he accidentally punched Loudred in the nose. When Konan noticed he punched something, he finally opened his eyes and saw Loudred holding his bleeding nose on the ground and glaring at him.

* * *

"Again! They're late again!" shouted Chatot, angrily. It wasn't the first time Team Pokepals were late. By now, everyone in the guild knew that Team Pokepals would be the last ones out, and that sometimes, they could hear some random screaming.

Like now.

_'Here we go again,' _everyone thought, sweatdropping. Then, they saw Team Pokepals approaching to the briefing room, only this time, Loudred had a bandage over his nose, and Konan was rubbing his head, which had a huge bump on his head. Everyone figured Konan did something to make Loudred mad, again.

* * *

"...AND THREE! SMILES GO FOR MILES!"

"Ok everyone! I have an announcement to make before we get to work!" announced Chatot. "Let me introduce our new allies!"

Everyone began chattering to each other. "New allies? What are they?" asked Thunder.

"I hope they're girls!" squealed Cynder.

"Me too!" agreed Konan, Corphish, Bidoof, Loudred, and Devin and other boys gleefully.

"Ugh, men," muttered Mia, disgusted.

"I know, right?" agreed Autumn as well as Sunflora, Chimecho, and some other girls from the guild.

"If there are going to be new allies, I want to see a female Loudred!" said Loudred, with hearts in hsi eyes, imagining a Pokemon like him, only a female.

"A...a female Loudred?" questioned Natsu.

"Hmm...a female Loudred," muttered Devin. "Wonder what that would be like?" That got the other boys in the guild other than Loudred to wonder too as they imagined what it would be to have another Loudred in the guild.

* * *

_The boys' imaginations... _

_It shows Loudred and the female Loudred waking everyone up every day, thus breaking everyone's ears so badly they almsot bled. Then, it shows the two Loudreds all lovey dovey and then them kissing._

_Then, it shows Loudred in a suit and the female Loudred in a wedding dress as they emerged from a church and everyone from the guild was happy and throwing flowers at them and taking pictures._

_Later, Loudred and female Loudred are holding their own child in a blanket-wait, what? _

* * *

"-And then we will name him...Loudred Jr!" proclaimed Loudred, happily. By now, every male had a disgusted and horrified look on their faces and silently pleaded not for a female Loudred.

"Hey! Over here, please!" called out Chatot. Suddenly, a nasty stench filled the air and everyone started coughing or complaining.

"Ugh! What is that smell?" exclaimed Thunder, cover his nose.

"You know, for once, I'm glad that I have a broken nose!" said Loudred.

"Who farted?!" shouted Kitty.

"Oh God no..." said Konan, complaining. "Please let it not be them..."

Unfortunely, Konan's guess was right. Climbing down from the ladder to the briefing room was the members of Team Skull, Koffing, Zubat, and their leader, Skuntank.

"Oh, you got to be kidding me!" groaned Konan, facepalming himself.

"I-it's them!" exclaimed Natsu.

"These three are our new guildmates!" announced Chatot happily, not even noticed the disgusting stench in the air.

"Whoa-ho-ho! I'm Koffing!" introduced Koffing.

"Heh-heh-heh! I'm Zubat! Glad to meet ya!"

"And I'm Team Skull's leader, Skuntank! Remember it." Then, Skuntank turned to Team Pokepals and added, "Especially you three."

Chatot looked back at Team Pokepals, then at Skuntank in surprise. "What, you know each other already? Well, that's even better!~ Anyways, these three aren't just joining us as apprentices, they will also be assisting us in our exploration!"

"What?!" exclaimed Konan, Natsu and Mia.

"No fair!" said Mia.

"You GOT to be kidding me!" said Konan for the second time.

"Why are you so shocked?" asked Chatot.

"Chatot sir, it's nothing. Those three brat-I mean,_ adorable friends_ always react to every little thing," ensured Skuntank.

Chatot shrugged. "Very well then. Anyways, the Guildmaster has already made his decision. More allies means that'll make us stronger in this expedition. Please treat our guests with hospitality.

"...You got to be kidding me," muttered Konan.

"Will you stop saying that?" whispered Mia.

"...Doesn't Chatot think something stinks about this? Literally?" wondered Loudred despite the fact that he can't smell the air due to his broken nose.

"How can the Guildmaster or Chatot stand this?" mumbled Sunflora.

"For once, I hope the expedition ends quickly," whispered Devin to his two teammates.

"Alright everyone! Time to get to work!~" cheered Chatot.

"...Hooray," everyone groaned, like they were a horde of zombies.

"Huh? What's this?" wondered Chatot, surprised at their attitude. "Where's your usual spirit?"

"You got to be KIDDING me!" shouted Loudred. "This STINKS! How can you expect us to be cheerful when-"

Suddenly, everything started shaking like an earthquake, and everyone looked around frantically, wondering what was going on. Then, they noticed Wigglytuff, mumbling, "YOOM..."

Everyone quickly figured out that Wigglytuff was the cause of all this and became more frantic. "Oh no!" shouted Chatot. "The Guildmaster's rage is building! If he's angry, it'll be horrific! Everyone! Come on! Be cheerful! Even if it's a pain to the butt! Alright everyone! Let's go to work!~"

"HOORAY!" everyone cheered frantically. Then, Wigglytuff stopped getting mad and looked perfectly happy. Everyone sweatdropped. How can anyone be suddenly happy after being mad for only a few seconds?

Anyways, everyone left to go work in a hurry, except Team Pokepals and Team Skull. Team Skull turned to Team Pokepals and Skuntank laughed, "Chaw-ha-ha! Nice to meet you!"

"Whoa-ho-ho!" laughed Koffing.

"Heh-heh-heh!" crackled Zubat, before the rest of Team Skull left.

_'They're crazy, birdbrain! They're crazy!' _thought Konan, refering to Chatot.

"Something's very suspicious about them," replied Mia.

"I know," agreed Natsu. "We don't know what they're scheeming, but we should be careful."

"Ok then," said Konan, all pumped up. "Looks like we got some rivals then! If we ever battle, I'll be sure to take my revenge on them with a Bubblebeam! So, we should get to work before Team SKull gets more popular then us!"

"Right!"

* * *

_At Treasure Town... _

"Ooh! Let's go check the Electivire Link Shop-"

"No, Konan. We're not."

"Hey! Stop dragging me by my Treasure Bag!" complained Konan as Mia was dragging him by his Treasure Bag, thus bringing a bit of attention.

"Konan, let's just go to Kecleon's Shop so we can buy some items," ensured Natsu gently.

"Ok, but what about-" Konan stop midsentence, because he saw the usual 'Gone on vacation' sign on the counter of the Electivire Link Shop, and then gone mute and shocked.

"Um...Konan?" wondered Natsu, wondering what was wrong with the Piplup.

"Oh, he probably gone shock. Don't worry, Natsu. He'll recover in a few minutes," said Mia.

"O-oh, okay."

* * *

_Mt. Bristle B1F _

"Alright! Time to kick some outlaw's ass!" cheered Konan.

"Still, don't you think it's a bit unfair? I mean, the only job we can do is catching some outlaw in the next floor," said Mia.

"But still, we'll still have some fun. Besides, it's just one job," said Natsu.

"HEY! YOU!" shouted a voice. Everyone turned to see an enraged Nidorino and was confused.

"Um...who are you?" asked Natsu.

"YOU DON'T REMEMBER ME?! ONE OF YOU SAID I WAS TRANSEXUAL, AND IT WAS THAT PIPLUP!" screamed Nidorino pointing to Konan.

Everyone thought about what he was talking about, until they remembered, and went paled. _'Oh no,' _they thought, realizing. This was the guy who Konan called transexual ( a couple of chapters ago) and Konan got beat up by him in return.

"Hey! No tresspassing!" called a wild Machop. "And-"

"DOUBLE KICK!" yelled Nidorino, stomping on the Machop. "DOUBLE KICK! DOUBLE KICK! DOUBLE KICK!"

A few minutes later, Nidorino was panting heavily after Machop on the ground, flatten like a pancake. Everyone's eyes widen and Konan chuckled nervously. "Whoa...for a second there, I thought that was going to be me!"

Nidorino turned to Konan and chuckled mischeviously. "Oh no...YOU'RE NEXT."

Konan's face paled. "Wait, what did I ever do to piss you off?"

"REMEMBER WHEN YOU CALLED ME TRANSEXUAL?!"

"Can't you take a joke?!"

"..."

"..."

"..."

_Later... _

"AH! AH! AH! AH! AH! AH!" screamed Konan, being chased around by the Nidorino while Mia and Natsu were sipping Natsu's Special Oran Berry Surprise.

* * *

_Mt. Bristle B2F _

"Whew! Finally managed to escape from him!" sighed Konan in relief, despite the fact he was covered in bandages.

"Congratulations," greeted Mia. "Now, you'll just have to figure out a way to get away from him next time you encounter him."

"..."

"..."

"..."

"..."

"...Oh, you have GOT to be kidding me-"

"AAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!" screamed a voice.

"Natsu! Calm down!"

"Konan, that wasn't me!"

"Not me either!"

"What? Then, who was it?" Everyone looked around and saw a suspicious looking Zangoose carrying Nidorino over his shoulder near some bushes. "Hey let that guy go!" ordered Konan.

"Uh...yeah, no," replied Zangoose as he ran for it.

"Well, I'm out of ideas!" shouted Konan, running after the suspcious Zangoose.

"He's too fast, Konan!" called Natsu, running after Konan with Mia right behind him.

"Natsu's right, Konan!" said Mia. "He's too fast! You won't be able to keep up with him!"

"Oh, you watch me!" called back Konan. "I'll get this guy faster than that time when I was invited to Corphish's room with Loudred, Diglett, and Bidoof..."

_A few minutes later... _

"...And it was worse and everyone thought that Dugtrio was actually a guy and a girl which would make Diglett's mom and dad in combination and..."

_A few more minutes later... _

"...And Loudred was convinced he had a huge nose and then he made us go to the emergency room where-what? Where the heck are we?"

Team Pokepals stopped to see a barren field and looked around to find the suspcious Zangoose

Then, Natsu cried, "Everyone! Look over there, it's Nidorino! The one we encountered before!" Natsu pointed to the once before raged Nidorino who beaten up Konan twice, and he was lying on the ground, injured.

"H-help me..." muttered Nidorino quietly.

"Oh my God!" exclaimed Konan. "...He's dead."

"Someone..."

"Yup! He's definitely dead!"

"Anybody..."

"Um...Konan?" questioned Natsu. "I think he's still-"

"Well! Looks like there's nothing else we can do for him, guys. He's definitely dead."

"Help me..."

"Dead dead. You're dead. Ohh my God, you're dead."

"Konan!"

"Alright, fine!" accepted Konan, giving up. "Jeez, I just wanted some revenge for when he beat me up..."

After healing Nidorino with an Oran Berry, Nidorino recovered, while Konan used Mia as a shield, thus earning a glare from her. "Thanks for saving me you three. And...you too," said Nidorino, refering to Konan.

"Thanks," said Konan, still hiding from Nidorino.

Nidorino sighed. "Look, I'm not going to hurt you anymore. I swear."

"...You promise?"

"I promise."

"You double swear?"

"Yes, I double swear."

"You triple swear?"

"Kid, you obviously don't want to see me when I'm angry."

"Eep!"

"So, what happened?" asked Natsu, trying to change the subject.

"Well, you see..."

* * *

_Flashback... _

**_Nidorino's P.O.V. _**

**_I met with Zangoose one day and realized he was an outlaw due to the posters. Then, I challenged him to a fight. If I won, he would admit deafeat and go with me to the Pokemon Police. But if he won, he would go home free. We battled, and I lost._**

**_Then, the next times we fought, the result was the same. I would get defeated, and he would take any of my precious stuff, even my adorable teddy bear-_**

* * *

"Wait, you had a teddy bear?" asked Konan, almost bursting into laughter.

"Yeah. What's wrong with someone like me to have a teddy bear?" asked Nidorino, glaring at the Piplup.

Konan shrinked. "Um...nothing! Nothing at all!"

"Alright then. As I was saying..."

* * *

**_And then there was this one time_ _when I tried to find some new strategies by traveling to a cruise ship, but when I tried to get to the cruise ship he was already there._**

_"Hello, Nidorino," greeted Zangoose with an ominous voice. _

_"AAAAAAAAHHHHH!" Nidorino screamed like a girl while running away._

_"That's right! Run away! But I will catch up with you! I will find you, Nidorino! And when I do-"_

**BEEP! **_"Attention all passengers, the ship is now leaving the dock," announced the captain over the microphone. _

_"Ahahaha! Ahaha-wait, what? No! Wait! I have to get off! NOOOOOOOOOO!"_

_"Some shrimp, sir?"_

_"Ooh! Yes, please!"_

**_But then today, I have had it. I decided to ambush Zangoose, knock him out, and then take him to the Pokemon Police without a fight. I know that's cowardly, but I couldn't take it anymore. Plus, he is a criminal. _**

**_But somehow, Zangoose detected me and instead, knocked me out before carrying me somewhere. He asked what his reward will be for him beating me. Then I told him there was no reward, so he just beat me there and left me to die. Until you guys came, and the rest was history._**

* * *

"Wait, how did you know about the parts you weren't there for?" asked Konan.

"...Just avenge me already," said Nidorino.

"Ok! But on one condition!"

"Konan! That's rude!" exclaimed Natsu.

"What? It's not a hard one! Anyways, if we take down this guy for you, you have to promise not to hurt me anymore!"

"Fine."

"Wait a minute! How does that benefit me and Natsu!" shouted Mia.

"Bene...fit...you guys...?" asked Konan, confused. "Ah screw it! Let's go guys! Nidorino, you'll be alright here, right?"

"No? Ok! Let's split up! Natsu and Mia, you guys protect Nidorino here while I go take of our little friend! See ya in a flash!"

"Wait a minute!" called Natsu. "You can't face him alone! You'll need-And he's gone."

"Is your friend always like that?" asked Nidorino.

"Mostly," answered Mia. "But no matter how much of an idiot he is, he does care for others, and he doesn't give up...mostly."

"ZANGOOSE GET YOUR SORRY RED BUTT OUT HERE SO THAT I CAN BEAT THE CRAP OUT OF YOU!" called Konan so loud that everyone in Mt. Bristle heard it."Ugh! Zangoose! Come out! Come on! Stop hiding you no-good, money hogging, big headed, egolistic, hot tempered, knuckle thrashing, ugly asshole!"

Nothing happened. Except Konan thought he heard some bushes rustling. Konan grinned and taunted, "Hey, Zangoose! You're hiding in total fear! You're the wuss of all Zangooses! Come on! Go and attack me already! Stop being such a pussy!"

"What did you say?!" shouted the Zangoose before, angry.

"Aha! Got ya! Bubblebeam!" shouted Konan, firing a barrage of blue bubbles towards Zangoose.

Zangoose dodged all of them swiftly and said, "That all you got? I've seen more powerful foes than you!"

"...That. Was. Low."

"Oh yeah? Slash!" Zangoose's claw glows white and tries to slash Konan, but Konan managed to dodge it and roll out of the way.

"Alright, Zangoose! Get your game on! Bubblebeam!" Konan shot another barrage of bubbles towards Zangoose but Zangoose just moved his head and dodged the bubbles.

"Hey, guess what?"

"What?"

"SOLARBEAM!" Zangoose's tail glowed white and he released a beam of yellow light from his mouth. Luckily, Konan detected that from his instincts and ducked down to the ground.

"Wait, how the hell can you use a Grass-"

"SOLARBEAM!" **BOOM! **Konan managed to dodge that attack as well and the beam hit a tree and destroyed it completely.

"SOLARBEAM!" **BOOM! **

"Seriously dude, what the hell happ-"

"SOLARBEAM!" **BOOM! **

"I'm not' even countering you yet!"

"SOLAR FREAKING' BEAM!" **BOOM! **

"Stop saying that!

"..."

"..."

"..SOLAR-"

"OKAY! THAT IS IT! GROWL! THEN BUBBLEBEAM!" After decreasing his opponent's offensive power, he charged right in with Bubblebeam.

"That all you got?" asked Zangoose. "Face it, boy! You can't win as long as I have SOLARBEAM!" **BOOM! **

"Yeah? Well, I've got something more powerful too, Zangoose!"

"An annoying attitude that'll get you killed?"

"I- no!"

"Well, how about this?" suggested Zangoose. "If you can guess what kind of move I'm about to use next, which is either an attack, defense, or supporing move, I'll let you take the first move and-"

"Attack! No, it's defense! No, it's attack! It's defense! Sure it's attack! It's defense! Has to be a defense!"

"Um...you do have a third option-"

"Attack defense move! D-defense attack move! The move's a defense one!"

"Just pick one!"

"Mmmm...pass!"

"You can't pass, you know!"

"Uh...um...mmm...attack!"

"Well, actually, I'm going to use-"

"It's a defense! No, it's an attack! A defensive attack!"

"It's a supportive move!"

"Aw, that was my next choice!"

"Embargo!" Suddenly, a purple ring surrounded Konan.

"What's this?!"

"Embargo is a move that doesn't allow you to use any items at all!" explained Zangoose.

"Oh, come on! And I was going to use my Geo Pebbles strategy!"

"Ha! Too late! Crush Claw!" Zangoose's claw glows blue-white and slams his claw down onto Konan.

"Gah!" Konan spits out a bit ot blood and glare up at Zangoose.

"Ha! Surrender, twerp?"

"Heh, nope! In fact, I was waiting for you to get close!" exclaimed Konan, grinning. "Bubblebeam!" Konan opened his beak and a horde of blue bubbles exploded into Zangoose's face.

"OWW! MY FACE!" screamed Zangoose, clutching his face.

"Take this! And that!" Konan was punching and kicking Zangoose as hard as he could, but they didn't seem to have much effect.

Then, Zangoose grabbed his leg and sneered. "You think that's enough to beat me? Crush Claw!"

Konan cried out in pain as Zangoose's claw slashed through his shoulder, making it bleed. However, this gave away Zangoose's opening. "Bubblebeam!" Konan fired bubbles at Zangoose's stomach at full strength, making Zangoose crotch down in pain.

"Haven't used this move in a while! Pound!" Konan slammed into Zangoose again like using the move, Headbutt. So, it went on. Konan would use Bubblebeam or Pound to try to take down Zangoose, but since Zangoose is an experienced fighter, he normally dodges most of the attacks and counters with his second most powerful attack, Crush Claw, while Solarbeam is his best. (Yes, it is possible for Zangoose to learn Solarbeam it says so in Bulbapedia)

Finally, Zangoose and Konan were panting heavily and bleeding a lot from a lot of spots. During that time, the Embargo placed on Konan had worn off. Then, Zangoose got out an Oran Berry.

"Oh, come on!" complained Konan.

"Face it, kid!" said Zangoose, cocky. "You've got no chance of winning! Why don't you run home and have a little tea party?"

"What if I had a move like Pluck?" asked Konan, now getting an idea.

"Well then, you'd probably win. But it's a good thing you don't-"

"Pluck!" Konan's beak glows white and he jumps from the ground and straight towards Zangoose.

"Ah come on!" Zangoose's Oran Berrry suddenly got swiped by Konan's beak and Konan quickly swallowed it when he got it.

Then, he landed right behind Zangoose and shouted, "Pluck!" Thanks to Zangoose near at his limits, he was ultimately defeated when he got struck in the stomach by the Pluck move.

"Alright! I just won the fight! YEAAAAHHHHH!" cheered Konan. "Well, time to get him back to the group!"

* * *

_That night, after dinner... _

After arresting Zangoose, Nidorino kept his promise and had not attacked Konan. Then, after dinner, someone suggested that they all start scary stories. Everyone agreed except for Team Skull, who declared that they were going to sleep early.

Now, everyone was gathered around in the Mess Hall, with only a few candles as their light. It was Bidoof's turn, and he was telling a story about zombies, and Bidoof was surprisely a good scary story teller since he was getting everyone shivering in fear, except for Mia and Croagunk, who were unaffected.

"And then I heard that someone removed the cursed seal and went inside the temple," continued Bidoof.

"Whoa! What did that person see?" asked Corphish.

"Nobody knows..." Then, Bidoof turned to Mia and Croagunk and asked, "So, did that scare you two yet?"

"Nope, but it is a good story," replied Mia.

"Meh heh heh...of course you wouldn't be scared," agreed Croagunk. "I didn't think it was terrifying myself."

"You're kidding!" exclaimed Sunflora. "Croagunk, I can understand, but Mia? Now we've got two fearless Pokemon in our guild!"

"Yeah! Mia's never afraid of anything!" agreed Konan.

"Unlike you," said Mia.

"Hey! I resent that!"

"Well, Natsu's scary stories does sometimes scare me," admitted Mia. "But I've learned to endure the fear, so now they don't scare me anymore. Sorry, Natsu."

"Oh, that's alright!" ensured Natsu.

"Seriously?" asked Corphish. "Because Natsu's scary story had everyone, including Croagunk but except you, huddled at the far end of the room! Heck, that story will give everyone and anyone nightmares if they heard it!"

"Really? I thought it was an adventure story."

"Far from it!"

"Ooh! Ooh! I want to tell a story next!" called Konan. But everyone else was chatting to each other about Mia being fearless and her might becoming popular or things like that.

**SWOOSH! **Everyone blinked in surprise after the candles were blown out. Then, they heard Konan say, "Oh wait! I'm not a Fire Type! Darn! Natsu! Use Ember!"

"Oh! Right! Ember!" After Natsu threw some small flames back to the candles, the light surrounding everyone was back on, but what they saw next was terrifying. They saw Konan near the candles, with a strange look on their face which seems to be scary.

"Now...listen very carefully," ordered Konan with a spooky tone.

"Ok! Ok!" most guild members replied.

* * *

_Once upon a time...there was three Pokemon. A...um...Pikachu named...um...Nia, a Chimchar named...Matsu, and a Piplup named Conan- _

* * *

"Hold on!" interrupted Mia. "That sounds like the Pikachu's me, that 'Matsu' character being Natsu, and that Piplup 'Conan' you! Why choose us? And if you didn't want anyone to find out that we were involved, you should have chose different names! Especially that Conan name!"

"Hey!" argued Konan. "It's my story and besides, Conan is different! My name, 'Konan,' has a K while my character 'Conan' has a C!"

"It's true," agreed Chatot. "Similiar and confusing, but true."

"Fine. Just continue."

* * *

_As I was saying, those three were traveling around the world. One day, they went inside a haunted house just for the heck of it. Then, when they got inside, an axe came swinging towards them. Matsu and Conan managed to dodge, but Nia wasn't so lucky and it sliced her head off clean. Her blood blossomed from her head and started spewing out like a water fountain. In fact, the blood surrounded the area and completely covered Nia's comrades in blood, making them scream. But they still decided to go inside the haunted house to avenge Nia- _

* * *

"Stop!" shouted Mia, angrily. Some guild members were shocked at how Konan was describing the death scene of his story and looked shocked. "Ok, why would you describe Nia's blood covering her comrades? I don't think that's neccessary, and why did Conan and Matsu decided to proceed? There could still be traps! And why didn't they run away and get the Pokemon Police?"

"I AGREE!" agreed Loudred. "Your story isn't making any sense!"

"Oh, shut up!" shouted back Konan. "It's my story! Besides, Some of us are scared shitless! Now, let me continue...

* * *

_Turns out that the Nia who died was actually Nia's older sister, Tia! And- _

* * *

"You did not mention her at all!" shouted most of the guild members, including Mia.

"Hey guys? Guess what?" wondered Konan.

"What?"

"Shut up!"

* * *

_Fine! It was actually Nia who died! There, happy? Anyways, Matsu and Conan started up the stairs of the haunted house when Matsu felt his leg being pulled. He and Conan turned around and screamed bloody murder. It was...Nia, only headless. _

* * *

"WHAT?!" everyone shouted.

"Ok, that's impossible, Konan!" corrected Natsu. "How can Pokemon come back to life? Especially after being sliced in the head?"

"Because she's a zombie!"

"Ohhh...what?"

* * *

_Yes, that's right! It was rumored that Pokemon who died in the haunted house would turn into zombies, whcih are beings that can come back to life, but they can't leave the haunted house. Luckily, nobody ever went inside the haunted house. The only thing to kill a zombie is by the heart! And by destroying the brain, but Nia's head was already destroyed, so the only option left was the heart._

_Immediantly, Matsu got out an Iron Thorn to try to finish off Nia, but he didn't have the heart to do it. So, Konan watched in horror as his friend Matsu was being eaten by Zombie Nia- _

* * *

"I would never do that!" yelled Mia, standing up. Then, everyone looked at her, surprised. Mia sat down quietly.

"...Jeez, Mia! It's just a story! Anyways, as I was saying.."

* * *

_First, Zombie Nia ripped out Matsu's heart and without hesitation, ate it, thus ending Matsu's life. Afterwards, she devoured his head completely with her already rotten yet sharp teeth and used her quick nails to rip apart Matsu's body, which is no longer recognizable and after a few minutes, she completely ate his body and licked her lips deliciously and sadistically, satisfied for the quick snack. _

* * *

"A SNACK?!" roared Loudred, terrified. "How can she thinks that's a snack when she completely ate a body?! That's...DISGUSTING!"

"I know, right?" said Konan, glancing at Mia, who was twitching her right eye in anger.

* * *

_Conan was too shocked to move, being covered in guts and blood. Then, he snapped out of his shock, grabbed the Iron Thorn that Matsu dropped, and without hesitation, stabbed Zombie Nia in the head. He stabbed her numerous times, and after what seems to be hours, her head and face was no longer recognizable. _

* * *

Everyone looked at Konan with shock and disgust written all over their faces. "Jeez, Konan! Overkill much?" wondered Chimecho.

"What? Zombie Nia totally deserved that!"

Now, Mia looked really mad and looked ready to wring Konan's neck anytime.

* * *

_Now, after avenging Matsu, Conan marched up the rest of the stairs, slaughtering any other Zombies in cold blood- _

* * *

"Hold on! I thought you said that there were no more zombies in the haunted house. And that nobody went inside the haunted house except for Conan and his friends," said Chatot.

"Hey, Chatot?"

"What?"

"Shut up!"

* * *

_As I was saying, Conan has finally met the mastermind. The one responsible for turning Pokemon into Zombies. The mass murderer! The sinful sinner! The foolish scientist! The- _

* * *

"Just say it already!" everyone shouted.

"Alright, fine!"

* * *

_And his name...is Chatot! _

* * *

After mentioning Chatot's name, everyone except Chatot burst into laughter as Chatot stared at Konan with a shocked look on his face. Then, Chatot got angry and shouted, "Why did you chose me as the villain?! Why?!"

"Um...because you have a mallet?"

"WHA- Where did you learn that?!"

"Oh, I learned it from Mia who learned it from Loudred who learned it from you! Now, as I was saying..."

* * *

_"How dare you hurt my allies!" shouted Conan._

_"Mwa hah hah! Too bad for you!" crackled Chatot. "However, I have a proposal for you! See here!" With one swing of his magical wand, Matsu and Nia were back to normal and not as Zombies, but they were unconscious. _

* * *

"Wait, how can he do that?" asked Natsu.

"Because he has magical powers!"

"Ah hah! Now, I'm the good guy!" said Chatot proudly.

"Nah, you're still the evil guy. Moving on!"

* * *

_"I'll make a deal with you!" said Chatot. "If you swear to be my servant for eternity, then I'll release your friends!"_

_"What, them? They're not my friends, I barely even know them!"_

_"Oh, shoot. Seriously?"_

_"Seriously! Hell, I don't even know their first names!" _

_"Um...yeah, but if you don't do something, they might seriously die!"_

_"Yeah, but they're already dead so it's a whole trick. Nice try." _

* * *

"Ok, I'm confused," said Corphish. "How can-"

"Hey! Guess what?"

"No, don't tell me to shut up!"

"I wasn't going to say that. I was wondering, isn't Conan such a jerk?"

"Yeah- but wait, isn't he your charac-"

"Moving on!"

* * *

_"Oh wait!" said Conan. "I know the song that make everything better! The song of disaster!"_

_"No! Not the song of disaster! That song's forbidden!"_

_"I know! I only use it for emergencies! But now is an emergency too!"_

_"No! NO!"_

_"Game over, Chatot! Listen to this!" (Imagine Yu Gi Oh Stronger that was from the song Stronger by Kanye West) _

**_(Work it, make it, do it, makes us_**

**_Harder, better, faster, stronger)_**

**_Yeah. Alright! Let's crank this up!_**

**_N-n-now th-that don't kill me_**

**_Can only make me stronger_**

**_I need you to hurry up now,_**

**_'Cuz I can't wait much longer_**

**_My moves like totally gonna beat ya_**

**_You may think you're harder_**

**_But just wait when I make my next move,_**

**_That's how long I've been on ya_**

**_(Work it harder, make it better,_**

**_Do it better, makes us stronger)_**

**_We're on the second firstdown_**

**_(More than ever ever after_**

**_Our work is)_**

**_Let's bring it downtown!_**

**_Yo, listen up home boy,_**

**_Let me be the tutor_**

**_I'm 'bout to tell ya all about how we saved the people_**

**_It started out with Konan the Piplup hanging out in the beach_**

**_Last thing I knew,_**

**_I was in a place that I couldn't even reach _**

**_But then this guy rolls up,_**

**_He's got a freaky awesome treasure_**

**_That got stolen by some crazy bastards_**

**_They almost killed me, man!_**

**_For all they're worth_**

**_Shouting out this stupid crap from being brought birth_**

**_And then they escape to this cave_**

**_They've got this need for speed,_**

**_It's a good thing I've got all the speed I need_**

**_But then the situation got worse,_**

**_Out comes this poison smoke!_**

**_That smoke's got me saying nope!_**

**_It's in hot pursuit,_**

**_Almost nearly tall_**

**_Got me jumping the roofs and got me climbing the walls_**

**_I try to escape, _**

**_But at the very last minute,_**

**_I whip out my moves and I push it to the limits sayin'_**

**_N-n-now that don't kill me_**

**_Can only make me stronger_**

**_I need you to hurry up now,_**

**_'Cuz I can't wait much longer_**

**_My moves like totally gonna beat ya_**

**_You may think you're harder_**

**_But just wait when I make my next move,_**

**_That's how long I've been at ya_**

**_(Work it harder, make it better_**

**_Do it faster, make us stronger)_**

**_We're on the second firstdown_**

**_(More than ever ever after_**

**_Our work is)_**

**_Let's bring it downtown!_**

* * *

Everyone stared at Konan, shocked and amazed. "Um...Konan?" questioned Natsu. "Where did you get a microphone...and a radio?"

Konan, somehow connecting the microphone to something along with the radio looked satisifed, then confused. "Huh...where did I get these things anyways? Well, anyways, after singing the song, Chatot was finally defeated, and Conan freed his friends and went home. The End!"

"...That was the worst scary story ever," commented Corphish.

"Definitely," agreed Mia.

"Stupid!" said Shine.

"Sorry Konan," agreed Natsu.

"That wasn't even a scary story," said Loudred.

"Hey! I had a lot of concentration on making this story!" complained Konan.

"I didn't like the part where I was the villain," said Chatot, annoyed.

"But I like the song!" sang Kitty.

"Me too!" agreed Chimecho. Everyone clapped at Konan's performance. Afterwards, everyone went to bed. Konan may have possibly the worst ghost story, but he was surprisely a good singer, and somewhat a good songwriter.

* * *

**Konan: Yeah! I rock in this chapter! Whoo!**

**Hope: There's more where that came from in the next chapter!**

**Konan: Yeah!**

**Hope: And it's a girl's song!**

**Konan: Yeah-wait, what?**

**Hope: Anyways, see you guys in the next chapter that will come out soon!**

**Konan: Wait, what's the song?!**


	10. Apple Woods, and singing!

**Hope: Hey! Just like I said, there's gonna be more singing in here too!**

**Konan: *gets a guitar* Hell yeah! **

**Hope: And Konan, you'll only do the singing, not the guitar.**

**Konan: Aw! Well, at least it's not a girl's song.**

**Hope: ...Anyways, Natsu, do the disclaimer!**

**Natsu: Mage of Hope does not own Pokemon, only the Pokemon Company does! **

* * *

"UP AND AT 'EM! IT'S MORNING!" screamed Loudred, behind the door of Team Pokepal's dormitory. After giving some thought, he decided that from now on, he would stay behind the dormitory door and use that as a shield so he can avoid punches, kicks, or pillows from the team, mostly Konan.

"*yawn* Morning," said Mia, rubbing her eyes.

"Morning," said Natsu, stretching his arms. Then, he looked back at Konan's sleeping form and called, "Konan! Wake up, please!"

"Ugh...I'm awake..." groaned Konan.

Then, Loudred slowly opened the door carefully. "Huh? Nothing's happened! No pillows, no punches, no kicks, and no insults to piss me off! I think we might actually have a normal introduction for once!"

"...Ugh...get bent you...freaky fish guy...yeah, I'm talking to you...Loudred..." mumbled Konan.

And then chaos erupted.

* * *

"...AND THREE! SMILES GO FOR MILES!"

"Ok! Time to get to work!"

"HOORAY!"

Before Team Pokepals could do their jobs as well, Chatot stopped them. "Wait. Your task today is to obtain stock to fill the larder."

"Um...in English," said Konan.

"He means to go get more food," corrected Natsu.

"Correct," said Chatot. "We inspected the larder this morning, and for some reason, the guild's food stock has dropped sharply all of a sudden. Furthermore, our entire supple of Perfect Apples has disappeared. That was the only item to be completely cleaned out."

"What are Perfect Apples?" asked Konan.

"They're very big and delicious apples. But, they're the Guildmaster's favorite food! If there were no more Perfect Apples, the Guildmaster would...um...er..."

"What?" wondered Natsu.

Konan facepalmed himself. "I think he means like what happened yesterday. How Wigglytuff nearly exploded."

"...Yes. That would happen," agreed Chatot. "That's why I'm begging you three to go get Perfect Apples."

"Wait, what?!" exclaimed Natsu. "I still don't know what's going on! It'll drive me crazy, not knowing!"

"Natsu, let me make things more specific," said Mia kindly. "If we don't get Wigglytuff more Perfect Apples, he'll get mad and blow a temper."

"Oh! I get it! Jeez, why are you guys that afraid? He can't get THAT mad, can he?" wondered Natsu, laughing lightly. Everyone sweatdropped. "But anyways, we'll get some."

"Good!" cheered Chatot, delighted. "Perfect Apples can be found in Apple Woods. Now listen, this may sound like a simple errand, but it is a critical job. So please don't fail!"

"Alright!" agreed Konan. "Let's do our best, guys!"

Meanwhile, Team Skull was evasdropping and watched Team Pokepals leave. "Whoa-ho-ho! Looks like they're going to go pick out some apples!" teased Koffing.

"That's because we feasted last night. A thankless task, thanks to us! Chaw-haw-haw!" crackled Skuntank.

"Heh-heh-heh! Let's mess with them!" suggested Zubat.

* * *

_In Treasure Town... _

"Ok, so we have to go pick up some supplies," suggested Natsu. "There could be very strong foes in Apple Woods. And perhaps due to the name, there might be Bug and Grass Types in there."

"Don't worry! Though Grass Types are my weakness, I can take them on like there's no tommorow!" said Konan, determined and punching the air as if he was fighting a foe as he and his team were walking past the Electivire Link Shop, where the shop was opened.

Wait, what?

**ZOOM! **Konan ran back to the counter of the Electivire Link Shop and examined the sign carefully. Yup, it definitely said, **"Shop, opened." **

"Howdy! Do you want me to link your moves?" called a voice. Konan looked up and saw a grinning Electivire looking right back at him.

"Y-you!" sputtered Konan, surprised. "You're the shop owner?"

"That's right!"

"I've been waiting forever for you! How does one vacation take so long? Anyways, I wank you to link some of my moves! Here..."

* * *

_At Apple Woods B1F..._

"So, this is the way to Apple Woods?" wondered Natsu. "According to Chatot, we need to go to the deepest part of the woods."

"Hey, when we get there, where are we going to put the Perfect Apples in?" asked Konan. "Because my Treasure Bag's almost full."

"So is mine," said both Mia and Natsu.

"Well, I guess we'll just have to throw away useless things to fit the Perfect Apples in," said Konan.

"But wouldn't that be a waste of items?" asked Natsu.

"Look, either we throw away items to fit in Perfect Apples, or we just go home with a few Perfect Apples and watch as Wigglytuff tore down the guild."

"Well, when you put it that way, I guess we'll have to throw some stuff out."

"Hey, I wonder what kind of Apples are here?" suggested Konan. "Maybe there are Apples where only Fire Types can eat to boost their fire abilities, something like Gummis! Or maybe there's even multi colored Apples!"

"Well, no," said Natsu. "You see, there's just mostly regular Apples and Perfect Apples in Apple Woods. However, there is a rumor that there might be a Golden Apple. A Golden Apple is really rare and gold."

"Sweet! If we're lucky, we might find one," said Konan, excited.

* * *

_Apple Woods B2F_

"Hey, this reminds me of a story I heard of," said Konan, sitting down on a tree stump.

"What's it called?" asked Natsu as he and Mia sat down on the ground.

"'Little Red Riding Hood!' You see, there was this girl all dressed in red and she was going to take sweets to her Grandma, who was sick. But, a big bad wolf-"

"What's a wolf?" wondered Natsu.

"Um...tell you later. Anyways, the big bad wolf wanted to eat the sweets AND Little Red Riding Hood-"

"That's her name?"

"Yes, Natsu! Anyways, the big bad wolf came up to her and asked what was going on, and she said that she was delivering sweets to her Grandma. The wolf thought of an evil plan and told Little Red to go pick flowers for her Grandma, which she agreed. Meanwhile, the wolf went ahead, sneaked inside Grandma's house, and ate her up, just like that!"

"Oh no!"

"Then, when Little Red came to the house, the wolf had disguised himself as the Grandma and pretended to be sick-"

"How can that wolf disguise himself? Little Red would quickly recognize him," corrected Mia.

"Apparently, Little Red, being the delicate and dumb girl she is, didn't see through the wolf's disuise. After talking, blah, blah, blah, the wolf saw his opportunity and ate her up."

"Well, that's not a happy ending," said Natsu, frowning.

"I wasn't done! Anyways, the hunter in the forest, who hunts down bad guys-"

"Oh! So is he from Wigglytuff's Guild?" asked Natsu.

"No, Natsu. None of this is related to Wigglytuff's Guild, or Pokemon. This is all about humans. Anyways, the hunter saw the mess in the house and carefully walked inside-"

"Oh no! Get away, Mr. Hunter!" cried Natsu and some other...small Pokemon?

"Ok, where did these kids come from?" asked Konan, annoyed.

"You just noticed right now?" wondered Mia. "They were here the whole time. They wanted to hear your story. And there was no harm."

"Fine. They can listen. As I was saying, when the hunter went inside, he saw the big bad wolf with a really fat stomach from eating Little Red and her Grandma. Plus, the wolf was asleep. However, somehow, Little Red and her Grandma was still alive-Honestly, I don't know how they can survive, especially the Grandma, but-"

"Boo! Go back to the story!" booed one of the children.

"You stink!"

"Go back to the story!"

"Alright! Anyways, with a hatchet-"

"What's a hatchet?" everyone asked. Konan facepalmed himself.

"-With a hatchet, the hunter sliced opened the wolf's stomach, allowing Little Red and her Grandma to go out free."

"That's disgusting," replied a little female Pokemon.

"Yeah, totally," agreed a small boy Pokemon.

"Well, how was he gonna get the two of them out of the wolf's stomach?" asked Konan. Nobody answered. "Yeah, that's what I thought. Then, realizing that the wolf was still alive-AND DO NOT ASK WHY HE'S STILL ALIVE WHEN HIS STOMACH WAS SLICED OPENED! ...Thank you. Anyways, the hunter quickly put a ton of rocks into the wolf's stomach, and the Grandma sewed the stomach back together, and with all three of them, they dropped him near a lake, then went back to the houseto celebrate and eat the sweets Little Red delivered. Meanwhile, the wolf had woken up, and decided to take a dip in the river to wash up. Unfortunely for him, not knowing that his stomach was full of rocks now, he jumped in and immedianly drowned due to the weight of the rocks. And they all lived happily ever after! The End!"

"Yay!" all the little children Pokemon cheered and clapped.

"I liked the part where the hunter saved Little Red and her Grandma," said a little girl Pokemon. Most of the girls agreed with her.

"I liked the part where the wolf died! Yeah!" cheered the little boy Pokemon. Now, all of the boys agreed.

"Hold on!" interrupted Natsu. "This is similar to the story, 'Little Red Pichu!'"

"Wait, how is this story any different than yours?" asked Konan.

"Well, here it is..."

* * *

**_The story of Little Red Pichu!_**

**_Once upon a time, there was a little girl Pichu dressed in a red cloak. One day, she heard her Grandmother was sick, so she decided to deliver some berries, Gummis, and other sweets to her Grandmother to make her feel better. _**

**_Then, as she was happily walking down the trail to her Grandmother's house, someone named Houndoom smelled the delicious smelling sweets in Pichu's basket and had plotted an plan. He walked up to her and asked, "Hello, Pichu. Fancy meeting you here. Where are you heading to?"_**

**_Pichu replied, "I am going to my Grandmother's house to give her some sweets! She is very sick, so I will try to make her all better!"_**

**_Putting his plan into section, Houndoom suggested, "Why don't you pick out flowers for her too? I'm sure she'll be delighted!"_**

**_"That's a great idea! Thanks, Mr. Houndoom!" While Pichu was gathering out pretty flowers, Houndoom was making his way to Grandmother's house._**

* * *

"Ok, everything at this point is a lot like my version of the story!" complained Konan.

"Don't worry! It's about to change from your point of view," said Natsu.

* * *

_**When Houndoom arrived at Grandmother's house, he knocked on the door. Then, Grandmother called out, "Who is it?"**_

_**Clearing his throat and pretending to be Pichu, he called back, "It's Pichu, Grandmother! I have sweets!"**_

_**"Coming darling!" The second Grandmother opened the door, Houndoom quickly knocked out Grandmother, tied her up, and hid her in a closet.** _

* * *

"No way! Where's the 'wolf eats grandmother part?'" whined Konan. Everyone just stared at him. "What?"

"...Moving on..."

* * *

**_When Pichu arrived at Grandmother's house, she knocked on the door and called, "Grandmother! It's me!"_**

**_Then,a loud, squeaky voice called back, "Hold on, dear! I'm coming!"_**

**_Just when the door was about to open, Pichu spotted a Poke Gald a little bit at the left, and walked towards it to pick it up. As she started to pick up it, the door sprung opened and the Houndoom tried to tackle Pichu, only she wasn' at the entrance! Pichu turned and saw Houndoom, screamed, and ran away._**

**_Meanwhile, a Pokemon named Magnezone was patrolling the area when he heard a scream. He turned and saw a little Pichu getting chased by a Houndoom. Determined, Magnezone came to Pichu's rescue and defeated Houndoom before tying him up. Then, they rescued Grandmother and they all ate sweets together. _**

**_The End!_**

* * *

"...That's it?" asked Konan. "Wow, and I thought Humpty Dumpty was the worse."

"Hey!" scolded Mia. "Natsu tried his best, so at least respect the story!"

"I like that guy's story better!" said one of the little boy Pokemon, pointing to Konan. The boys agreed.

"I liked his story better!" said one of the girl Pokemon, pointing to Natsu as the other girls agreed.

"Hey! This reminds me of something!" replied Natsu. "Long ago, there was this play with me and some other people! And we were doing it from the story, 'Little Red Pichu!' And Mia was Pichu!"

"Seriously? Hmmm..." Konan got a sneaky idea.

_'Well, it's not like he's going to make me wear a red cloak just because I performed in that play before,' _thought Mia.

* * *

_Apple Woods B3F _

_'How the hell did he convince me to do this?' _thought Mia, all dressed up in a red cloak that covered nearly all of her body, but somehow managaed to fit her size. _'This is stupid! Well, at least I'm glad that no one else is going to hear about this.' _

Meanwhile, Team Skull were following behind quietly and hidding near bushes when they saw Mia's outfit. They nearly laughed out loud. "W-what is she wearing? She looks like that Pichu character from that 'Little Red Pichu' story!" laughed Koffing.

"I got an idea!" said Skuntank. "We'll be the big bad Houndooms, and those three wimps will be the Pichus!"

"Brilliant, boss!"

"I like it, boss!"

Meanwhile, back to Team Pokepals, they thought they heard some quiet laughter and looked around only to see nothing. "Hey, do you guys feel like we're being followed?" wondered Konan.

"But I don't see anyone," said Natsu.

"Man, maybe this is turning out to be like the story," groaned Konan.

* * *

_Apple Woods B4F _

"An enemy!" pointed out Natsu, pointing to a Burmy. Immediantly, Konan charged towards the Burmy. "No wait, Konan!"

"That reckless idiot!" muttered Mia, running after him.

Then, Konan shouted, "Super Pound/Pluck attack!" One of his arms and his beck glowed white, and he tackled and slammed into the Burmy, defeating him quickly due to the linked moves.

"Whoa!" exclaimed Natsu. "Konan, what was-"

"Hey! Enemy at 10 o'clock!" warned Mia, pointing to a Burmy charging towards Konan with Pound.

Konan smirked and shouted, "Growl and Bubblebeam combination!" Due to the effects of Growl, the enemy's attack was low, and due to having a high level, Konan easily defeated the Burmy with a simple Bubblebeam.

After the battle was done, Natsu, Mia, and Team Skull, who were hiding in the bushes and watching everything, were shocked rather than surprised. "...Konan. What was that?" Mia asked, the first to speak up.

After throwing an air punch to celebrate his victory, he replied cheerfully, "Those were linked moves I got from the Link Shop!"

"B-but I thought Electivire was still on vacation!" sputtered Natsu.

"Not anymore! Now I've gotten even more stronger!"

"Konan, when we get back, I want you to show me where the Link Shop is!" demanded Mia.

"Ooh! Jealous of my new power, aren't ya?" teased Konan.

"No! It's because I also want to get strong!"

"By the way, Konan? How much money did you spent on linking your moves?" asked Natsu.

"Well, due to all the money we had in the bag and the bank, and from spending them from linking and strengthing my moves, I'd say...0 Poke Glad."

"What?!"

"Konan, I can't believe you! Hogging all that money! Now we have to go get more!" shouted Mia, punching Konan childishly on the head.

Meanwhile, Team Skull was still speechless from seeing Konan's new-found power. "...Boss?" wondered Zubat.

"What?"

"I think that we are royally screwed."

"Shut up you idiots!" hissed Skuntank, hitting both of his comrades in the head. "Don't say that! Besides, we still got out 'secret gas weapon,' don't we?"

"Oh yeah! I totally forgot about that!" said Zubat.

"Whoa ho ho! Boss sure is smart!" commented Koffing.

"Craw-haw-haw! That's right! Don't you two dare forget that! Craw-haw-haw-"

"Hey, guys! I hear some really loud evil laughter coming from these really big suspicious bushes!" said Konan, pointing to the big bushes Team Skull were hiding in. "I'll use one of my new linked moves to get whoever's in there! In three..."

"Eek! L-let's get out of here!"

"Two..."

"This way!"

"One! Super Pound/Pluck attack!" As the two combintation attacks cleaved through the bushes, multiple twigs and leaves swirled and scattered around, but no signs of anyone was there. "What the-?!"

Team Skull were actually on top of a tall tree, hiding from plain sight using the bushes on the tree and panting heavily. They had barely made it from being exposed, and Team Pokepals didn't even notice them on the tree.

* * *

_Apple Woods B5F _

"Look out!" warned Natsu, pointing to a Weedle and Oddish coming their way, ready to fight.

"Alright!" said Mia, stretching her arms. "Time to hit the scales-"

"No, Mia! Red Riding Hood doesn't fight!" insulted Konan, now in front of Mia.

"W-what?! What gave you the idea that-"

"Super Pound/Pluck attack!" shouted Konan, aiming for the Weedle, surprising Natsu.

"O-oh! We're starting now? Ok! Ember!" Now, there were two charred up and burned enemies at their feet, unconscious.

"Hey Konan?" called out Mia.

"Yeah?"

"THUNDERBOLT!"

* * *

_Apple Woods B6F _

"That'll teach you for not letting me fight before!" said Mia as she and her comrades were walking.

Konan, all electrified from the Thunderbolt Mia had used eariler, commented, "Jeez! Did you really had to do a critical one?"

"You're lucky that I gave you an Oran Berry afterwards! So be thankful!"

"Um...Mia? How about you rest for a few minutes?" suggested Natsu. "Your feet have bruises from walking and fighting, so you don't need to push yourself."

"Hmm...maybe you're right, Natsu. Sunflora always told me, 'A lady needs her beauty sleep,' or something like that to me."

"Um..." sputtered Konan. Natsu turned a bright red and scratched his cheek.

"What? Did I say something wrong?"

"Well, it's just that..." started Konan. "Never did realize you were the type to care about beauty and stuff like that. I guess I didn't really thought of you as a lady. Maybe more like a beserker..."

"Excuse me?!" shouted Mia, angry, and covered in a red and dark aura of doom.

Konan and Natsu started sweating nervously, not that Natsu had anything to worry about since Mia is only mad at Konan. "Um...I'll let you two deal with this," said Natsu before running behind a big rock.

"You freakin' team killer! Traitor!" shouted Konan at Natsu, throwing his arms around in the air out of frustration.

"I have absolutely no idea what you're talking about!"

"Answer my question, Konan," growled Mia, now glowing with an even bigger and brighter red and dark aura. It doesn't seem like Konan will be able to avoid her question.

"Um...well, you fight like no lady has ever fought before-I mean, not to say that a girl can fight, but-Um-in my image, I see that a girl is supposed to be pretty and kindhearted, (unlike you, who's always bashing out at me) and-Mia? What are you doing with that rock?"

"Oh? This rock?" asked Mia, acting like she didn't know. She dropped the small rock she was carrying, walked around, and brought back a BOULDER in her hands. How she was somehow able to carry such a thing, even though she wasn't sweating despite the fact she is light weighted, nobody will know. "I'm thinking a sharp blow to your head might just fix your eyesight.

"W-what?! I-I mean-I-I gotta go! Go get Natsu instead! He made me say it!" shouted Konan before running off.

"You freakin' team killer! Traitor!" called Natsu, a bit mad at Konan for blaming him for something he didn't do.

"I HAVE ABSOLUTELY NO IDEA WHAT YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT!"

"Get back here, Konan!"

* * *

_Apple Woods B7F _

"Jeez! What's taking Konan so long?" wondered Mia, as she and Natsu were drinking Natsu's Special Oran Berry Surprise while sitting down.

"This sorta reminds me like a few days ago, when Konan got lost and was chased down by a Monster House," said Natsu honestly.

"Oh yeah, that was funny. Let's just hope he doesn't do the same thing again." The reason why Natsu and his adoptive sister were sitting alone together was that they and Konan were fighting off a lot of Pokemon enemies, and while they were getting strong, Konan spotted the last enemy running off and started chasing after it. It's been half an hour since then.

"Hey!" they heard a voice shout from afar. Both looked up and saw Konan...getting chased by a very large group of Beedrills.

"Oh no!" cried Natsu, standing up quickly along with Mia.

"Help! Hel-ow! Ow! Stop poking me!" shouted Konan as he was running towards his friends as the Beedrills were trying to attacking him with their long, conical stingers.

"Hey Konan! Get out of the way, before I electrify you like what happened in Mt. Bristle!" warned Mia.

"What do you mean?" called back Konan.

"When you were surrounded by lots of Starlys, and I had to bail you out!"

"Oh! ...Hey, don't zap me! Zap the Beedrills! I know you did it on purpose last time! And don't try to deny it!"

"Whatever! Get ready to dodge when I give you the signal!"

"I'll help out too, Mia!" suggested Natsu, also getting ready to fight too. "With me being a Fire Type user, and you being an Electric Type, those Beedrills won't have a chance because two of their weaknesses are Fire and Electric! In addition, they're similiar to Flying Types too, so it'll be more effective with your Electric moves!"

"I like this strategy! Now, Konan!" shouted Mia. Immediantly, Konan ducked to the ground, and just as the Beedrills were ready to surround the Piplup...

"Thunderbolt/Ember!" shouted both Mia and Natsu in unison. With the two combined Special Attack moves together, the Thunderbolt has red sparks surrounding it and outlined in red. The flaming Thunderbolt managed to take out most Beedrills, but there was still more to come.

"Konan! Attack them with your link moves!" commanded Mia desperately.

"I can't! I used them all up!" shouted Konan, dodging attacks from the remaining Beedrills, which were a lot left.

"Then just delink them and use the remainder of your moves!" shouted Natsu, as he and Mia were also dodging.

"I did! And I'm completely out of PP!"

"Ugh! You idiot! Here, catch!" shouted Mia, throwing something to Konan. Konan caught it and saw it was a Max Elixir.

"What am I supposed to do with this?" asked Konan.

"Konan! Ow! That's a Max Elixir! It can completely restore your PP! Ow!" explained Natsu, getting hit by the sharp stingers.

"Thunderbolt!" cried Mia, electrifying the Beedrills attacking Natsu.

Quickly, Konan drank all of the Max Elixir and felt his PP completely restored. "Whoa! Konan's back in action!"

In just a few minutes, Team Pokepals managed to defeat not only the whole group of Beedrills in the area, but in the floor too. By the time they were done, they had leveled up to Level 15, Natsu learned a new move called Fury Swipes, which he replaced with his Scratch move, Konan had gotten a new move, but thought it was worthless and decided not to use it, and everyone found some new and useful items in the floor.

* * *

_Apple Woods B8F _

"Hey Natsu! I want you to do me a favor!" declared Konan, stopping. "Don't do any Fire Type Moves!"

"Why?" asked Natsu.

"Because you might cause a forest fire, and then lots of Pokemon will die or suffocate from the smoke. Plus, we'll really get in trouble with Chatot!"

"Oh...okay then."

"Wow Konan. For once, you're actually serious and taking responsibility!" said Mia, amazed.

"...I'll just take that as a compliment," replied Konan, annoyed at the somewhat insult Mia made. "Anyways, I was thinking really hard about strategies and decided that if I want to be a good leader, there must be changes!"

"Well, here's a good change for starters," said Mia. "Anything else?"

"Well, that's it!"

"Nothing else? How boring."

"Hey! I found the stairs!" called Natsu, pointing to a pair of stairs.

* * *

_Apple Woods B9F _

"So Konan," spoke Natsu. "Which direction do you think we should go?"

"Koooooonnnnnnnaaaaannnnn..." groaned a Exeguttor.

"Um...why does he know my name?" wondered Konan.

"Open this door," commanded the Exeguttor, pointing to a random door that appeared out of nowhere and seemed to lead to nothing.

"This door leads to nothing!" said Mia.

"You don't know that! It will lead you to a world of deep, unending pain and torment-I mean, a world full of sweets and cute things!"

Konan said, "We don't care about your-"

"Ooh! Sweets! I love sweets!" exclaimed Natsu.

"Natsu, there are no sweets behind that door!"

"But free sweets!"

"Natsu, that guy is going to trick u-"

"Sweets!"

"Natsu, no-!"

The second Natsu opened the door, something nearly scared and scarred Team Pokepals for life. Showing from the other side of the door, showed a Zubat and Koffing in some kind of makeup with feathers in their heads and leaping out of bushes and screaming, "OOGA BOOGA-"

**SLAM! **Immediantly, Natsu slammed the door closed. "That didn't look like no sweets!"

"Um...those two strangers must have ate them all!" said Exeguttor, obviously lying.

"Yeah, I'm not buying it," said Konan. "Let's go, guys." With that, Team Pokepals ran away from the weird Exeguttor.

After they left, Exeguttor turned to Team Skull, who were hiding in the bushes, and asked, "What would that gain? Besides me getting paid of course."

"Just for the heck of it," answered Skuntank, not in makeup or the feathers. He thought, _'Actually, it was because I was bored and I ordered Zubat and Koffing to do that stupid act. No way was I going to participate as well.'_

* * *

_Apple Woods B10F _

"How much floors are left?" asked Konan, gasping for breath.

"I don't know, Konan. This is the first time we've been here," said Natsu.

All of a sudden, a small group of Beedrills appeared and saw Team Pokepals. "Ah! There they are! You'll pay for hurting our dear Beedrill friends!" one of the Beedrills shouted, flying towards them.

Before Natsu and Mia could prepare to fight, Konan stopped them. "Wait! I'll deal with them! Here I come!" With that said, he charged towards the Beedrills headon. "Piplup Rage!"

"...What the hell was that?" wondered Mia.

"Oh! That was my catchphrase just in case you wanted to know! Piplup Rage!" After yelling his new catchphrase outloud, he began battling the Beedrills all by himself. It didn't take long, seeing how he's been getting stronger and he was fighting a very small group, making things easier.

As soon as he was done, Konan, surrounded by several unconscious bodies of Beedrills, yelled, "Piplup Rage!"

"We got it the first time!" said Mia, irritated.

* * *

_Apple Woods B11F _

"Konan, what are you humming about? And what are you writing about?" asked Mia.

"Hmm? Oh, just a new song," said Konan.

"Last night, I was really surprised that you could sing really well," said Natsu.

"Me too. Never knew you could sing that good," complimented Mia.

"Yeah, well I might sing like that again soon. And if that happens, I might need an audience," said Konan.

"Well, I can't wait! What are you going to name the song?" asked Natsu.

"Hmmm...I'm getting some new ideas, but so far none. Hopefully by the end of today, I'll be able to create a new song."

"Well-wait, you actually brought the radio and a mircophone?" wondered Mia, now noticing that things Konan had somehow hid in his Treasure Bag. "How he was able to fit the mircophone she could understand, but the medium sized radio? That she'll never know.

"Yup," said Konan, who stopped walking. "Check this out! This is the song I'm gonna sing!"

"Wait, can you wait until we get to the next floor?" asked Natsu. "There's the pair of stairs there."

"Oh, okay then."

* * *

_Apple Woods B12F _

While Team Pokepals had just arrived in the 12th floor, Team Skull were in Deep Apple Woods, trying to climb up the big tree in the middle, which contained all of the Perfect Apples. Well actually, Zubat and Koffing were trying to get their boss, Skuntank, up the tree first because he ordered them too.

All of a sudden, loud music (the music is the Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers theme music) filled Apple Woods, startling Team SKull and making them drop their leader, which he collasped on top of them.

"W-what is that?!" exclaimed Skuntank.

Meanwhile, Konan had just pressed a button, which activated the music, and it was surprisely loud and startled all of the Pokemon living in Apple Woods, not just the floor. Very quickly, Konan turned down the music and pressed another button.

Then, another song, which is Sexy Back Remix, was heard, only not too loud. "Ok, not this one," said Konan. "But I do like this song!"

_Click! **"My Little Pony...My Little Pony..."** _(Theme music from My Little Pony) "What the hell?!" exclaimed Konan, switching to a different song.

"_Safety Dance" _by _"Men without Hats" _was heard all over. "Nah!"

"_What's up People?" _by _"Maximum the Hormone" _played. "Nah."

_"All Alone" _by _"Celine Dion" _played. "Nah."

_"Cherry Pie" _by _"Warrant" _played. "Nah."

_"Fett's Vette" _by _"Mc Chris" _played. "Nah."

"No wait I like this-" started Mia, trying to stop Konan.

_"Pokemon theme music" _played. "...I don't even know what this is."

_"Ghost Nappa" _from _"Team Four Star" _played. "...Ok! I give up! I'll show you guys later!"

* * *

_Deep Apple Woods... _

"I think this is the farthest we can get," announced Natsu, stopping in front of the big tree in the middle.

"Hey, look! Those must be the Perfect Apples!" shouted Konan, pointing to the big tree in front of them. Natsu and Mia looked up to see big round apples. "Alright guys! I have a plan to get those Perfect Apples down! So here it is. You guys help me get to the top, and while you guys are at the bottom, I'll grab the Perfect Apples and throw them down at you as you guys can catch them. Ready? Break!"

"No," said Natsu, disagreeing.

"Yeah, no," Mia also agreed with Natsu.

"Chaw-haw-haw! Nicely done!" crackled a familiar voice, surprising Team Pokepals.

"Who's there?" demanded Mia, getting ready to fight. Then, they heard some rustling in the big Perfect Apple tree and looked up and saw Team Skull sticking their heads out from the bushes before jumping down, forcing Team Pokepals to give them space.

"Aah! It's them! It's Team Skull!" shouted Konan.

"Chaw-haw-haw! Team Skull, at your service!" laughed Skuntank, bowing his head a bit.

"Heh-heh. It's wimpy and company. What took ya so long?" asked Zubat.

"We were having a picnic of Perfect Apples while waiting for you guys," revealed Koffing. "Why, if you wanted some, you should have asked!"

"What?!" exclaimed Natsu. Then, he turned to his team and whispered, "They say that they ate all of the Perfect Apples, you guys. But there are still some left up in the tree. So, I suggest that we knock them out and get the Perfect Apples."

"Best plan ever!" shouted Konan, excited. "And it'll be a piece of cake! We already beat Zubat and Koffing before! So, it shouldn't be hard beating that son of a bitch boss they have!"

"Chaw-haw-haw! Trying to fight us, eh?" laughed Skuntank. "How very rude of you! Why, I was even going to offer my help for your mission."

"Huh?" echoed both Konan and Natsu.

"What are you talking about?" asked Mia, suspicously, but curious.

"You were wondering on how you could get the Perfect Apples, right?" Skuntank started to explain. "Well, watch this!" Then, he turned around, and headbutted the tree so hard, that all of the Perfect Apples came tumbling down from the tree to the ground. "See? I offered you my assistance. Go on. Take these Perfect Apples and go back to the guild."

"Yeah right!" accused Konan, pointing at Team Skull. "We're not going to turn our backs on you guys just so you can ambush us!"

Team SKull seemed taken aback by Konan accusing them. "Well, color me surprise! They didn't fall for that!" said Zubat, shocked.

"Aww. How boring," groaned Koffing.

"It was obvious! You'd have to be an idiot to fall for an obvious trap like that!" said Konan.

'So what now?" questioned Skuntank. "What do you plan to do now?"

"It's simple," said Natsu, trying to stand up for himself. "We're going to beat you, then return to the guild with Perfect Apples!"

"Yeah! Three-on-three! Our team,Team Pokepals aka Team Red, vs Team Skull, which is Team Blue!" cheered Konan.

"Well now, aren't we peppy today," said Skuntank sarcastically. "When we first met, you were shaking like a leaf, Natsu! Chaw-Haw-haw!"

"W-well, it's true. I did act like that before...And even now, I'm a little scared," said Natsu sadly. "But I won't lose again! I have my friends supporting me!"

"Okay, Team Skull! This time we're really gonna beat ya! And there's nothing you can do about it!" declared Konan, proudly.

"Please, wimpy," insulted Skuntank, being cocky. "I could defeat you one-on-one with both hands tied behind my back. What makes you think you can win this time?"

"Well, I'm glad you asked! This is what I call, 'Piplup Rage!'" With that being said, Konan got out a microphone and a radio and pressed a button, which caused music to play. ( The song is from Brooklyn Rage from the Yugioh Abridged Series and it was taken from Poker Face from Lady Gaga)

"...Ok, where the hell is that music coming from?" asked Skuntank. Mia just facepalmed herself, and Natsu was excited to see what was going on while Team Skull was just confused.

_**"Nah nah nah naahhhhh,"** _Konan started to sing in the microphone.

"Are...are you actually going to sing?" asked Skuntank.

_**"Nah nah nah naahhhhh..."** _

"Is he going to sing?" asked Zubat to Koffing, who shrugged.

_**"Nah nah nah naahhhhh**_

_** Nah nah nah naahhhhh**_

_** Nah nah nah naahhhhh**_

_** I wanna fight them like they do in dueling duels**_

_** Fold em, let them hit me, raise me, then my Bubblebeam goes! (I love it!)**_

_** All I gotta do is to train and get my moves linked**_

_** And then I kick some butt before my moves are delinked**_

_** Ohhh, Oh, oh, oh, ohhhh**_

_** Ohhhh-oh-ohh-oh-oh**_

_** Ain't no surprise, show him what I've got**_

_** Ohhh, oh, oh, oh, ohhhh**_

_** Ohhhh-oh-ohh-oh-oh**_

_** Ain't no surprise, show him what I've got**_

_** Can't beat my, can't beat my**_

_** No, they can't beat my**_

_** Piplup Rage!**_

_** (I don't wanna be a loser)**_

_** Can't beat my, can't beat my**_

_** No, they can't beat my**_

_** Piplup Rage!**_

_** (I don't wanna be a loser)**_

_** Pip-pip-pip-Piplup Rage, pip-pip-Piplup Rage!**_

_** (Nah nah nah naahhhhh)**_

_** Pip-pip-pip-Piplup Rage, pip-pip-pip-Piplup Rage!**_

_** (Nah nah nah naahhhhh) **_

_** I won't lose to any villains**_

_** Cause they're evil**_

_** And I'm cooly with groovy powers**_

_** I'm not baggin'**_

_** I just want to kick your braggin' ass**_

_** Met this team who's a bunch of loonies**_

_** Treated us like we were noobies**_

_** And they're such an ass, such an ass,**_

_** Check my moves, cause I'm marvelous**_

_** Can't beat my, can't beat my**_

_** No, they can't beat my**_

_** Piplup Rage!**_

_** (I don't wanna be a loser)**_

_** Can't beat my, can't beat my**_

_** No, they can't beat my**_

_** Piplup Rage! **_

_** (I don't wanna be a loser)**_

_** Can't beat my, can't beat my**_

_** No, they can't beat my**_

_** Piplup Rage!**_

_** (I don't wanna be a loser)**_

_** Can't beat my, can't beat my**_

_** No, they can't beat my**_

_** Piplup Rage!**_

_** (I don't wanna be a loser)**_

_** Can't beat my, can't beat my**_

_** No, they can't beat my**_

_** Piplup Rage!**_

_** (I don't wanna be a loser)**_

_** Can't beat my, can't beat my**_

_** No, they can't beat my**_

_** Piplup Rage!**_

_** (I don't wanna be a loser)**_

_** Pip-pip-pip-Piplup Rage, pip-pip-pip-Piplup Rage!**_

_** (Nah nah nah naahhhhh)**_

_** Pip-pip-pip-Piplup Rage, pip-pip-pip-Piplup Rage!**_

_** (Nah nah nah naahhhhh)**_

_** Pip-pip-pip-Piplup Rage, pip-pip-pip-Piplup Rage!**_

_** (Nah nah nah naahhhhh)**_

_** Pip-pip-pip-Piplup Rage, pip-pip-pip-Piplup Rage!**_

_** (Nah nah nah naahhhhh)**_

_** Pip-pip-pip-Piplup Rage, pip-pip-pip-Piplup Rage!**_

_** (Nah nah nah naahhhhh)**_

_** Pip-pip-pip-Piplup Rage, pip-pip-pip-Piplup Rage!**_

_** (Nah nah nah naahhhhh)"** _

Everyone just stared at Konan when he finally finished the song. After Konan realized everyone was looking at him, dumbfounded, he asked, "What?"

"...So anyways!" started Skuntank, continuing what had happened before the song had interrupted. "Try if you can withstand this attack! Koffing and I will use our noxious gas combo!"

Right on cue, both Koffing and Skuntank fired off really nasty gas from their own bodies. The effect was too powerful for them to resist, so Team Pokepals immediantly fainted the second the gas filled the aura.

A few seconds after Team Skull seemed to have left, Mia got up, and brushed the dust off her. She looked fine, but she still looked digusted at the smell of the stench filling the area. She thought, _'Hmm...I guess since releashing my true power, I recovered most of my resistence. I'll have to do something about my powers before something gets But first, I have to wake up Konan and Natsu.' _

After a few minutes later, she finally woke up Natsu, who had a headache from the stench. "Ooh...what happened...?" he asked, shaking his head to clear his mind. Suddenly, he remembered and ran to Konan's side. "Konan!"

"Ugh...damn that Team Skull..." groaned Konan, getting up slowly.

"Whew! It seems like you're alright!" sighed Natsu in relief.

"Ugh..." groaned a familiar voice. Everyone turned and saw Zubat, getting up slowly as well. Turns out even Zubat couldn't resist the full stench Koffing and Skuntank created. When he realized what was going on, he yelped, "Aah! They left without me!"

Before Konan could tackle him to the ground, Zubat had fled off with incredible speed. "Man! If only we caught him on time!" groaned Konan.

"I'm sorry," apologized Mia. "I didn't know he was still lurking here. But it was just with all the gas and all."

"Don't worry. It's not your fault," ensured Natsu. "Oh! What happened to the Perfect Apples?!" Everyone looked around, but there wasn't a single Perfect Apple in plain sight.

"Aah! Those guys ate them all!" exclaimed Konan. "Now what are we gonna tell Chatot?!"

"If they're gone, there's nothing we can do," said Natsu sadly. "Let's go back to the guild."

* * *

_Back at the guild... _

"WHAT?! YOU FAILED?!" Chatot's screech could be heard all over Treasure Town. "Are you serious?! Oh no! What am I going to do?!" As Chatot was yelling and worrying, he was running around the room in a panic.

"There was nothing we could do, Chatot," said Natsu gently. "You see, Skuntank and-"

"QUIET! I don't want any excuses!" scolded Chatot, turning his attention back to Team Pokepals.

"Come on! It wans't even our fault you dumb birdbrain!" shouted Konan. "If it weren't for that stupid Team Skull, we would not be here, arguing about which one's right and wrong, while your stupid beak keeps babbling about us being liers!"

"Where do you get off calling your superiors such insults?!" argued Chatot.

"Well, you aren't listening! That's why!"

"Well! You leave me no choice! You'll go no dinner tonight!"

"What?! Why?!" asked Team Pokepals.

"You failed to complete an important mission," explained Chatot. "I will report this to the Guildmaster after dinner! You three will come with me as well. If I had to face the Guildmaster's Wrath all by myself, well, that wouldn't be fair! This is a strict order!"

With that said, Chatot left the room. Konan whispered to his team, "Don't worry! At least we still got some food in our Treasure Bags!"

Then, Chatot came back and offered his hand as if he wanted something. "Oh, and I want your Treasure Bags for tonight as well."

"What?! But why?" asked Konan, shocked.

"Because I have the slightest suspicion that you three will only snack on food inside your Treasure Bags! Therefore, fork them over!"

Being forced to, Team Pokepals handed over their Treasure Bags each, before following Chatot down to the Mess Hall while being in a bad mood. Now, they had to wonder how they were going to eat food the next time they failed in Sentry Duty if they ever get the chance to.

* * *

Later, after dinner, Team Pokepals did what they were told to do and followed Chatot to Wigglytuff's Chambers. Once they got inside, Wigglytuff turned around and cheerfully said, "Hiya! Your brought me some Perfect Apples, didn't you? Thank you, friendly friends!~"

"Um...there uh...has been some sort of slight problem, Guildmaster," spoke Chatot, nervously.

"Huh? What's wrong?" asked Wigglytuff.

"You see uh...truth be told...these three failed to bring any Perfect Apples and uh...um..."

"It' Ok. I understand. Everyone fails sometimes," said Wigglytuff, making Chatot and Team Pokepals breath a sigh a relief. "So, where are the other Perfect Apples."

As if a radio screeched to a stop, everyone froze and stared at Wigglytuff. _'Didn't he even listen to a word Chatot/I said?' _thought everyone.

"Um...as I said before, they failed to get them," said Chatot, sweat running from his forehead. "And um...the amount of Perfect Apples is...zero."

"...Oh."

"And that means, Guildmaster...You will have to make do without Perfect Apples for a while. Yup! That's what it means! Hee! Heehehehehehehehheheh!~"

_'Why is he laughing?' _Team Pokepals thought, sweating.

Wigglytuff did not see this funny as well, and remained silent. Until he broke in a fit of sniffles, and soon, crying. "Aah!" screamed Chatot, knowing full well what will happen. The guild started rumbling like before, and everyone started panicking.

"Chatot! Do something!" shouted Konan.

"SQUWAK! ME?! WHAT CAN I DO?!"

"Apologize to him! Sing to him! ANYTHING!"

"Sorry to keep you waiting! We brought a Perfect Apple!" said a familiar voice.

The magic words made Wigglytuff stop his crying and the rumbling of the guild and everyone confused. They turned and saw Team Skull in the entrance of the chambers, shocking Team Pokepals. Zubat and Koffing pushed them away to make way for Skuntank, and Skuntank dropped a Perfect Apple near Wigglytuff.

"Here you go. A Perfect Apple. Please take it as a token of our friendship," said Skuntank.

"Wow! You got it just for me? Thank you!~" said Wigglytuff happily.

"Y-yes! Thank you very kindly!" said Chatot, also grateful. "Thanks to you three, we've been spared a catastrophe!" Then, he turned to Team Pokepals and ordered, "Well? Hurry up and thank them too!"

"Grr..." growled Konan and Mia, not wanting to.

But before they could, Skuntank held up a paw and shook his head. "No, no. It's alright. Your guild has been kind to us. It's only right that we repay that favor."

_'Piplup Rage...' _thought Konan, angrily.

"Oh! You must be really generous!" cheered Chatot happily. "To be able to go through an expedition with a team like yours will be most inspiring!"

_'Piplup Rage...!' _thought Konan, his anger slowly growing.

"Chaw-haw-haw! No, it will be your guild who will inspire us!" corrected Skuntank. "We look forward towards the expedition! It's late now, so we'll be off to bed. Until tommorow then! Chaw-haw-haw!"

_'PIPLUP RAGE!' _thought Konan, ready to burst any second.

* * *

_Later, that night... _

"You know, it's really grateful that Skuntank and his team showed up in time," said Natsu, relieved.

"Are you kidding? They were the ones at fault here," argued Konan. "I was ready to go Piplup Rage on them anytime!"

"Yeah, but we still didn't eat anything," said Natsu, sighing. "Sorry, I know you guys are hungry too, but still..."

"Don't worry about it," ensured Konan. "Let's just go to sleep. Goodnight."

"Night."

"Goodnight."

* * *

**Hope: And with this, it's done!**

**Konan: Why did I have to sing something from Lady Gaga?! I saw her wear a meat dress once! I mean, come on! Who does that?!**

**Hope: I have no idea how you acquired that info, but I don't think that relates to our conversation. Anyways, in the next chapter, something interesting might happen!**

**Konan: Team SKull is finally gonna get exposed?!**

**Hope: No! Stay tune for next time!**


	11. Vs one of the Top Tem Criminals! Raichu!

**Hope: Alright! The next chapter is up!**

**Konan: Alright! I'm all fired up!**

**Hope: You stoled that from Fairy Tail, didn't you?**

**Konan: Hell yeah! Now, let's get this show on the road!**

**Hope: Fine! Just do the disclaimer, and we can get started!**

**Konan: Alright! Mage of Hope does not own Pokemon, only the Pokemon Company does! **

* * *

"UP AND AT 'EM! IT'S MORNING!" rang Loudred's voice.

"Ugh...shut up...I don't feel like working and I'm starving," groaned Konan. To prove it, as if on cue, his stomach growled outoud.

"Jeez, what HAPPENED to you three? I mean, what did you do this time to not get dinner last night?" asked Loudred.

Konan gathered the strength to lift up his head and say, "Two words. Team Skull."

"Ah," said Loudred, understanding. "Well, what did they do?"

"We were assigned Perfect Apples. Stupid team beat us there and ate them. And knocked us out with gas," said Konan.

Loudred tried to translate all of that, and when he did, he asked, "So what you're telling me is that Chatot ordered you guys to get Perfect Apples in Apple Woods, and then Team Skull ate all of them by the time you got to the place, then they knocked you out by some gas? Well, that explains the horrible smell coming from the Mess Hall."

"Uh huh," said Konan, groaning.

"I can't move..." groaned Natsu. However, Mia just woke up, stood up, and seemed uneffective.

"Aren't you hungry too?" asked Loudred.

"No, I'm perfectly fine," said Mia, calmly. Then, a loud rumbling sound came from her stomach.

"Your stomach says otherwise," pointed out Loudred. Then, he turned to Natsu and Konan and told them, "Hey, wake up."

"Ugh...carry me," said Konan, offering his arms.

"Me too," agreed Natsu, also offering his arms. With a sigh, Loudred tossed both boys over his shoulders and carried them to the briefing room, which Mia followed behind. When everyone saw Loudred carrying Natsu and Konan, nobody asked questions.

* * *

"...AND THREE! SMILES GO FOR MILES!"

"Ahem. One last thing," said Chatot. "In several days, we plan to announce the members of the expedition party."

With that news being heard, lots of Pokemon cheered and started chattering to each other excitedly. Sunflora squealed, "Oh my gosh! I can't believe it! We're finally going to be picked!"

"Yeah! Our team for the win!" cheered Cynder.

"You do realize that not all guild members can go, right? Especially apprentices," reminded Shine.

"Well, you don't have to discourage me!"

"Everyone! This is your last chance to show an inspiration!" called Chatot. "Work hard and impress us if you want to be chosen! Alright everyone! Let's get to work as usual!"

"HOORAY!"

After everyone left, Chatot called out to Team Pokepals, "You three, come here." After obeying, he continued, "You three should do your jobs as usual. Also, here's your Treasurte Bags back. And there's one other thing, about the expedition, you should give up about being chosen as expedition members."

The three members of Team Pokepals were shocked, and only Konan and Mia were angry. "Huh?! Why?!" shouted Konan.

"Your failure yesterday weighs heavily yesterday," said Chatot. "You know, it's difficult to tell what our Guildmaster is thinking after the whole Perfect Apple incident."

"Oh, come on!" complained Konan, while Mia is slowly getting angry. "It was only one time!"

"But there's no doubt he's angry. There's no doubt that he wouldn't pick you three. So, when the time comes to announced the members, don't get your hopes up."

That last sentence made Mia snap. Or nearly by 99%. Chatot swore he thought he saw some small sparks flying towards him, but purposely missed. When he turned to Mia, he started sweating like crazy. Though Mia looked quiet and calm, if you looked carefully, you could see that she's seething in anger and there was something fierce in her eyes, like she's ready to take her anger out on someone.

"Um...Mia? Are you alright?" sqweaked Chatot a bit. Just his tone made Natsu and Konan turned to Mia, which both were confused what Chatot was scared about. "Ahem! Never mind! Anyways, just do your jobs!" With that, Chatot walked away.

Mia glared down at her hand, which still showed small signs of small sparks coming from them. She thought, _'I really have to find a way to conceal my power, quickly!'_

"Ugh! Stupid birdbrain! Why'd he have to say that?" scowled Konan. "We're hungry, we have no expedition-I wish I had Wigglytuff's power, so that I can blast Chatot away!"

* * *

_Konan's imagination... _

_"No dinner for you!" demanded Chatot, pointing to Konan._

_Konan just opened his beak and yelled, **"YOOM-TAH!"** _

_Later, Chatot ordered, "Go get Perfect Apples!"_

**_"YOOM-TAH!"_ **

_Later, Chatot said, "Do Sentry Duty!"_

**_"Yoom-TAH!" _**

_Finally, Chatot added, "Clean the dishes!"_

_And I bet you can guess what happened next. _

* * *

"Ahhh...those would be the good times," sighed Konan. "But seriously, where are Team Skull? I'd like to give them a lesson or two!"

"Well looky here! It's the slacker, (Konan) the midget, (Mia), and wimpy (Natsu)!" laughed Skuntank, as he and his team came up. "Chaw-haw-haw!"

"Ho-ho-ho!"

"Heh-heh-heh!"

"What?! You wanna say that again?! You wanna repeat that, you f***ing prick?!" shouted Konan, waving his arms around, angrily. "Huh? You f***ing want to start something? Come on! Let's go! Three-on-three! Red vs Blue! No camkills! I'll f*** you up!"

"J-just calm down!" started Zubat.

"Shut the f*** up, you! We're all pumped! We're ready to f***ing go! Let's do this!"

"Yeah!" agreed Mia.

"That's right! We've haven't eaten last night thanks to you three!" said Konan.

"I want Skuntank!" said Mia.

"Me too!"

"..." Without a word, Team Skull walked away, fast.

"Yeah, that's right! Ya better f***ing walk away, you blue bastards! Huh?! HUH?!" Everyone just stared at Konan, shocked.

"Jeez, Konan. Overload, much?" wondered Mia.

"Well, that's one way to release my anger. But now the problem is hunger now. Man! I really wished Chatot didn't take our Treasure Bags for the night."

"Psst! Over here!" whispered a familiar voice. Team Pokepals turned and saw Sunflora, Bidoof, and Chimecho trying to whisper to them while being a bit far away.

"Come this way!" hissed Bidoof, before he, Sunflora, and Chimecho went into the dormitories. Curious and confused, Team Pokepals agreed to follow them. When all of them got inside Team Pokepals dormitory, Bidoof looked around cautiously. "Whew! Nobody saw us! Except, maybe Croagunk."

"So, what's going on?" asked Natsu.

"Well, here you go," said Sunflora, laying three Apples on the ground, surprising Team Pokepals.

"Awesome!" exclaimed Konanm picking up the apple. "These are for us?"

"Yup! We all set aside a little of our dinner last night," said Bidoof. "Eat up!"

"Tanks! (thanks)" said Konan, his mouth full as he was already eating the apple like there was no tommorow.

"Hey! At least wait for us to finish our sentence before eating!" exclaimed Bidoof, Chimecho, and Sunflora.

After Team Pokepals were done eating their Perfect Apples, they sighed in relief.

"Thank you, thank you, thank you!" sang Konan, happily.

"But why did you help us?" asked Mia.

"Well, every guild member has to help out another fellow member! Besides, we can't have you trying your very best to join the expedition with empty stomachs!" said Chimecho cheerfully.

"Thanks you guys," thanked Natsu sadly. "But Chatot said we might not have a chance to get picked."

"Because he's a prick!" added Konan. Everyone just looked at him. "What? It's true! He wouldn't listen to our excuse!"

"...Anyways," continued Sunflora. "Even if you don't get picked, you should at least cheerf for the ones that do."

"If you work hard, even if you don't get pick, at least you'll be helping out other Pokemon. Yu yup! I'm sure of it," encouraged Bidoof.

"Everyone, thank you!" said Natsu, happily.

"Yeah! Now, we're all fired up and ready to get our jobs done!" cheered Konan. "First things, first! I have to find Chatot and apologize to him for calling him a prick!"

"Um...Konan? I don't think that's really neccessary-" started Natsu. Unfortunely, Konan had already left. A few seconds later, everyone in Team Pokepals' dormitory all jumped and was surprised by Chatot's loud screech and they heard something like a mallet being dropped to the ground.

Then, Konan came back with a huge bump on his head. "You know what? Screw apologizing to Chatot, he keeps being a jerk to me! Well, not a bad jerk, but still."

After all that, and before Team Pokepals were heading back to work, Croagunk stopped them as they were on their way to the room where the jobs were listed. "Meh-heh-heh! Hey you three! Come here!"

They finally noticed Croagunk and went to him. "So, Croagunk! What's up?" asked Konan.

"Meh-heh-heh. What are you three up to with Bidoof and the others? It looked so sneaky," crackled Croagunk.

"Um...well, you see uh...that is..." sputtered Natsu and Konan as they tried to make an excuse.

"Oh, forget it. Anyways, that's not why I called you here. Meh-heh-heh! The waiting's over!" Croagunk started to explain, pointing to a large cauldron behind him. "The Croagunk Swap Shop is back in business! I finally finished repairing my Swap Cauldron! You see, you put certain items in the Swap Cauldron. And those items get swapped for an item offered up by another Pokemon in Treasure Town. There are other Pokemon who have rare items for swapping. So, in exchange for some items, you could swap those items for a brand new, rare item! So, if you three feel like swapping, come to me, okay? Meh-heh-heh!"

"Ooh! So, if we gave you a couple of items, you can create weapons?" asked Konan, excitedly. "Awesome! Can you make a rocket or something like that?"

"...No, I can't," said Croagunk, sweatdropping. "But that is an excellent idea, if I could! Meh-heh-heh!"

_'Oh great,' _thought Mia, annoyed.

_'Another to join Konan's club, huh?' _thought Natsu.

"By the way, Croagunk? I have a question," said Mia seriously, getting an idea. "Can you also make an item that can conceal great powers?"

"Hmm? Yeah, I can do that. It's really simple, but I do need the neccessary ingredients," said Croagunk.

"Then, I want you to make the most powerful and strongest one," said Mia. "I'll do anything!"

"Meh-heh-heh! Are you sure? It'll cost a lot!"

"And why do you need one, Mia?" asked Konan.

"Well, for accessory of course!" answered Mia boldly.

"Nah, I don't think so. I mean-"

"Don't repeat our conversation from yesterday!"

"Aah! I don't want to be flattened by that boulder again!"

_'Meh-heh-heh...I don't think that's the real reason why she wants it. Why she wants it, I'll ask her soon enough,' _thought Croagunk as he wrote down something in a piece of paper. Then, he handed the things to Mia and said, "Here you go. I should be able to make it early if you give me the ingredients by today."

"Alright! This will be easy!"

Natsu and Konan looked at each other and thought, _'Why does she really want that?'_

* * *

_Mt. Bristle B6F _

"Ok, this rain is really getting hard now!" exclaimed Konan, covering his head with a huge leaf. When Team Pokepals had to try to find an Electric Type outlaw named Raichu, who was rumored to be found somewhere in Mt. Bristle. Now, it was raining hard.

"I know, right?" agreed Cynder, who was running up to them.

"Oh, hi Cynder."

"Hi Konan."

"..."

"..."

"...Huh?! Whoa! How'd you get here!" exclaimed all members of Team Pokepals, now noticing Cynder, who was also covering his head with a huge leaf.

"Oh, I'm on a solo mission today!" answered Cynder. "Besides, I want to find that famous outlaw, Raichu and defeat him! And if I defeat him, then my points will go higher up, probably making my team go to Silver Rank."

"Huh?! Seriously? Wait, how powerful is this guy?" asked Konan.

"Well, I heard that he's one of the top ten criminals in the world, but he's only in tenth place! He's called the Thunder King!"

"Whoa! Maybe we should have picked a different criminal then!"

"You're right, Konan," said Natsu. "We should abandon this mission and leave it for higher rank explorers to deal with this. Remember what happened to Tyranitar? We almost nearly died back there if it weren't for Team Triolet!"

"You fought Tyranitar, the ninth place criminal?!" exclaimed Cynder.

"Yeah, but Team Triolet did most of the work," admitted Konan. "But I delivered the final blow!"

"No, you didn't!" said Mia.

"By the way, what's that list you're holding, Mia?" asked Cynder.

"Oh, this? It's just a list of things I need for Croagunk to make me something," said Mia.

"That guy? Not to be offensive but he's kinda...um..."

"Creepy? Yeah, I know. But he's still good. In a way," said Konan. "Do you have some info about Raichu? We need some in order to beat this guy."

"Well, he's an Electric Type for starters, so maybe you should get a Rock Type or Grass Type to help you. Second, he might have some allies, so be careful."

"Well, that's just great," said Konan.

"There's more," explained Cynder. "It's raining."

"So?"

"Well, if you were standing in a puddle and Riachu send an thunder attack at the puddle where you were standing, it would deal more damage," explained Natsu. "In addition, you're a Water Type, and they're weak against Electric Types."

"...S**t. I never even thought of that," cursed Konan. "But hey, we won't know until we try! We took down two of the most dangerous criminals! One, Drowzee-"

"Konan, Drowzee is actually a third-rate criminal," corrected Cynder.

"Oh...then, we beated Tyranitar-"

"Again Konan, I was told that you, Mia, and Natsu were beaten and watched as some other team defeated Tyranitar, so that doesn't count."

"But we defeated Ditto-"

"Konan, don't you ever pay attention to your fights?" asked Cynder irritated.

"Oh, of course I do!" said Konan. "Anyways, we shouldn't waste any time! Let'sget moving!"

* * *

_Mt. Bristle B7F_

"Where is he? He shoudl be here!" complained Konan.

"Don't forget, he might have minions," reminded Natsu.

"...Let's split up," announced Mia. She had one hand behind her back, which was crackling with strange lightning, which no one noticed.

"Good idea," agreed Cynder. "We should split into two teams. One-"

"Actually, I was planning on going alone," said Mia.

"Wait! You can't go alone!" said Konan. "The teams will be equal. There will be two teams, and there are four of us! So, it's a good chance-"

"Sorry, but no," said Mia. "And the reason why is because if you and Natsu fought together against Raichu, you'd be annihilated because you're a Water Type, and he's a Thunder Type. If you're wiped out, then he'll target Natsu next. And due to this rain, his Fire Type moves won't have much effect against Raichu. The same thing will happen to Cynder. So, I suggest that you three work together to fight him, and I'll go search for his minions."

"But, what if you run into him instead?" asked Cynder.

"Don't worry. I've gotten into far tougher situations," assured Mia. "I protected Natsu from Rock Types, and Thunder Types before."

"It's true," agreed Natsu.

"Well, I'm off then," said Mia, running off into a direction direction as the sounds of slooshing came as she ran across the puddles.

"Wait! Ah man! Let's just hope that she's safe," said Konan. "If she's not, then I'm totally taking her bed if she's gone."

"Konan!" exclaimed Natsu.

"It's a joke, Natsu!"

"Watch out!" yelled Cynder, tackling both Natsu and Konan. **ZAP! **A bolt of yellow lightning flew past their heads and struck a rock, which immediantly and somehow broke into pieces the instant the bolt made contact.

"Huh, you have good instincts, I'll give you that," praised an unfamiliar voice. The three boys got up quickly and looked around to see whose voice was that. They turned around and saw a Raichu not too far away.

All three boys got into battle positions. "Hey, is he that Raichu guy we're supposed to catch?" asked Konan.

"Bingo!" said Raichu. "Another exploration team out to get me, huh? Don't they learn they can't catch a first-rate criminal such as me?"

Then, Natsu started shivering like crazy. The boys noticed Natsu shivering. "Hey, Natsu? What's wrong? We're done fighting Drowzee, so there's no need-"

"No, Konan. I-it's not that..." sputtered Natsu. He asked Raichu, "C-can I ask a q-question? A-are you from the S-storm Clan?"

Raichu looked surprised, then laughed. "Hahahaha! You guessed right! How'd you know?" Then, he looked at Natsu carefully and looked calm. "Oh...so you're one of those survivors, huh? Where's the rest of ya, huh? In exchange for you telling me, I'll let you know that me and two others are still alive."

Natsu's eyes widen in fear and shock. Then, he answered, "I-i'm the only survivor! Me!"

"Hmm...you sure you aren't lying? Cause if you're lying..." Raichu's fist started to get surrounded by yellow electricity as he got closer.

Cynder and Konan stood in front of Natsu with their hands held up, ready to fight. "Alright, what did Natsu do to you anyways? If you mess with Natsu, you gotta mess with the Trio brothers!"

"Konan, we're not even brothers. And we're just teaming up for this mission," reminded Cynder.

"Try whatever you like! You can't beat someone like me! Besides, my minions will arrive here soon, and a while ago, they just wen to that direction," bragged Raichu, pointing to the same direction where Mia went.

Everyone's eyes widen. "No!" cried Cynder.

"Aw, did someone else come with you? Well, too bad for them! Hahahaha!"

"Why you..." muttered Konan angrily. Then, he charged towards Cynder saying, "Take this! Bubblebeam!"

Suddenly, the bubbles swiftly went past Raichu and disappeared into the rain, or rather, popped. "Whoa, what the hell?!" exclaimed Cynder.

"I think what happened was that Raichu evaded the Bubblebeams at the last second before coming right back in, thus making us think that the bubbles went past him," explained Natsu.

"Very good! I can understand now why you're the heir to the Blaze Clan!" said Raichu.

"What?" asked Konan. "What's he talking about?"

"Let me explain, Konan," said Cynder. "You see, my family's familiar with this Blaze Clan because the Blaze Clan is a whole groiup of Fire Types. They contain the most powerful Fire Type users, but not legendary ones. The heir receives immense powers the day he or she is born, so the other clan members will know who's the heir. They also have a rivalry with the Storm Clan, which I think Raichu's from. About a few years ago, something happened, and now the Storm and Blaze Clan are now disbanded because both clans had a war over something. But now, only a few survivors remained."

"That's right," said Natsu, bitting his lip. "I'm...the heir to the Blaze Clan."

"What?!" exclaimed Konan, Cynder, and Raichu.

Then, Raichu laughed and said, "This is great! That means I'll kill the only survivor in the Blaze Clan, then the Blaze Clan will be no more, and I will avenge my clan! Hahahaha!"

Meanwhile, Mia was running through the rain, desperately looking for Raichu and his lackeys. She seems to be a bit far from where Natsu and the others were. Besides, if they were somehow able to locate Raichu, then they'd have to hide first. They, well normally Konan or maybe Cynder, would be stupid enough to fight head on towards one of the most dangerous criminals in-

"Hey, wait a sec." Something clicks into Mia's mind. She wasn't thinking straight because of her wanting to try to take down Raichu alone, but thinking it calmly, she missed something. If Mia couldn't find Raichu or his minions or all three of them, then where would they be located? Knowing that Raichu's a dangerous criminal, he probably wouldn't hesitate to kill anyone. So, what if her team encountered not only Raichu, but his minions...?

"...They'd be no match even though it's three-on-three..." muttered Mia, shocked. She turns around and starts running to where she had been before separating from her team. She had to make it on time! She had-

**BOOM! **Mia sensed something approaching in her way, and just in the nick of time, she jumped back and avoided a Electric Type attack from the sky. Seeing how there's rain everywhere, it would be natural if there was also a thunderstorm, but that wasn't the case if there was an Electric Type criminal on the loose. Mia turned around and saw a Jolteon and Electabuzz, sparkling with electricity.

"Damn! Missed her!" complained Electabuzz.

"Don't worry, you'll get her next time," purred the Jolteon, more sparks filling up her body.

"Damn it! Looks like I have to get past them first!" muttered Mia as electricity also filled up her body.

Back to Konan and the others, they are now facing Raichu, who's a really powerful opponent. Raichu laughe as he commented, "Hope you guys are ready to die!"

'Actually, not yet, hold on," said Konan before going through his Treasure Bag and humming a cherry tone despite the gloomy mood in the rain.

About two minutes later, Raichu asked, "Now?"

"Hold on, hold on."

Five minutes later, Raichu asked, "Okay, how about-"

"Ofay, rady," (Okay, ready) said Konan with his mouth stuffed with Blast Seeds. **BOOM! **Cynder and Natsu looked in shock as Konan fired a HUGE explosion from his mouth and towards Raichu directly. Raichu was on the ground, his leg twitching in the air.

"I...totally deserved that," groaned Raichu as he stood up. "Ok, s**t just got real. THUNDERBOLT!"

**BOOM! **At once, a huge lightning bolt came and struck down Konan, Natsu, and Cynder, making them fall on their knees and nearly burnt to a crisp. They were lucky they survived but there's no doubt they would survive another attack like that.

"D-damnit...how the hell did my strategy fail..?" gasped Konan struggling to get on his feet.

"Maybe it's because you guys didn't get much stronger and had help through almost every battle on your journey," suggested Raichu.

"Oh come on," said Konan, thinking it over. "That's..."

* * *

_Battle against Tyranitar_

_Result: **Team Triolet did the most damage and defeated Tyranitar **_

_Sentry Duty_

_Result: **FAILED **_

_Waterfall expedition_

_Result: **Failed due to Wigglytuff being the first to discover it and failing to retrieve any jewels **_

_Capturing Rhydon_

_Result: **Won only because Team Sunshine was assisting them **_

_Capturing Ditto_

_Result: **Won because of Team Sunshine's help **_

_Capturing Zangoose_

_Result: **Won due to Pluck and because Zangoose had an Oran Berry **_

_Getting Perfect Apples_

_Result: **COMPLETE FAILURE**_

* * *

"...Completely true."

"Now, wouldn't you like to know who the heir to the Storm Clan is? Or was?" wondered Raichu.

"I-I don't know who he is," said Natsu.

"What?! Why not?" asked Konan.

"Yeah. I'd have to agree. If you're the heir to the Blaze Clan, you'd have to know about the heir of the Storm Clan!" said Cynder.

"Sorry, all I know is that he's strong and that he's a male," apologized Natsu.

"No matter. I'll tell you the shocking truth," replied Raichu. "You see, it was supposed to be ME who was supposed to be the heir. But due to my new born sibiling and my sibiling's immense powers, I was stripped from my position as heir and then that title was claimed to my younger sibiling! It wasn't fair!"

"So, who is he anyways?" asked Cynder.

"The heir of the Storm Clan is someone that you Blaze Clan captured! The heir-"

**BOOM! **A gigantic bolt of thunder fell from the clouds and striked down Raichu completely, making him roar in pain. One of the ten top criminals was screaming as the bolt of thunder strucked down his body, his body and face marred by a hundred new scars. It was the biggest lightning bolt anyone's seen in their lives. Raichu was still standing as the smoke cleared, but his body was burnt to a crisp, and as a final act of revenge, he muttered a curse to the heavens as he fell down on top of the puddle, making him wet.

Everyone's jaws literally dropped to the ground in shock. Then, they looked around to see who had done it, but there was no one around other than them. Besides, it was too rainy to see who was there. "...Uhhh..." said all three boys out of shock.

"...That...came out of nowhere," Konan finally spoke.

"Impossible to have been seen," commented Natsu.

"Completely random, actually," corrected Cynder.

"Impossible to do, really," Konan corrected the two of them.

Just then, Mia came up to them while dragging two tied up Electric Types by some ropes. "Hey, guys!" she said.

"Whoa! Where'd you come from?' asked Konan.

"Just now! Whoa, looks like you defeated Raichu! I knew you could do it without me! While I defeated two of his minions!" said Mia, pointing to the Jolteon and Electabuzz who were tied up and knocked out.

"Well actually, this huge bolt of lightning came and defeated Raichu," admitted Cynder, pointing to the sky.

"Hey! I gave him some damage too, you know! You guys did nothing!" said Konan.

"By the way Konan, where did you get all those Blast Seeds? There's no way you could have gotten that many and put them all in your Treasure Bag without us noticing," asked Natsu.

"Oh, that's easy! While I was forming that strategy to beat Raichu, (which kinda failed)I took the liberty of getting all of your Blast Seeds from your Treasure Bags!"

"What?!" Natsu, Cynder, and Mia exclaimed. They all looked inside of their own Treasure Bags and saw they had no more Blast Seeds and glared at Konan.

"You stoled them!" accused Cynder.

"Actually, I borrowed them without asking."

"Same difference! Get back here, you-!" With that, Cynder started chasing around Konan around the rain.

* * *

_Back at the guild... _

When Team Pokepals and Cynder returned to the guild, they were soaking wet and injured, except for Mia, who seemed perfectly fine for some reason. After Officer Magenzone retrieved Raichu and his minions, which everyone was shocked and surprised that a couple of rookies managed to beat one of the Top Ten Criminals in the world, he rewarded them with some useful items and gave them a lot of points so they could rank up. Now, Team Pokepals were at Bronze Rank and were told that they were close to Silver Rank, while Cynder's team, Team New Sunshine, went into Silver Rank.

Later, Chatot demanded how the heck they had managed to defeated Raichu and his minions with just a few injuries and with Mia being the only one unscathed.

"It was easy," explained Konan.

"Knowing Konan, he'll just take some of the credit," said Mia, annoyed. "So, we split up. Konan, Natsu, and Cynder all together while I went alone. I thought I would be fine. Then, I encountered Raichu's minions. It was...a bit difficult beating them, but I received no injuries and managed to knocked them out with a few tactics."

"But HOW? His minions are supposed to be one of the most powerful Electric Types!" yelled Chatot, not believing anything.

"Easy. They were too confident on themselves. Their confidence was the reason they lost," answered Mia.

"Anyways, we encountered Raichu, and due to Konan's...crazy and somewhat useful strategy, we managed to damage Raichu, but it wasn't enough. He had us on our knees, and just when he was going to attack again, a huge crazy ass thunder bolt came from the sky and struck down Raichu! And I'm sure it was a really powerful Pokemon who did it!" explained Cynder, exaggerated.

"Well, this is too crazy to believe," sighed Chatot, exhausted. "But Officer Magnezone told me that Raichu and his minions are in a deep coma now, so it'll be hard getting answers from them. For now, I'll believe your story. But how a bunch of rookies were able to defeated such a formiable opponent, I'll never know."

With that, everyone left for bed to get up early tommorow for a new day.

Later that night, a shadowy figure walked right in front of Croagunk's Swap Shop and waited patiently. Then, that figure heard some footprints and saw Croagunk with a small lattern approaching the figure.

Croagunk asked, "Do you have the supplies?"

The figure stepped into the lattern's light, revealing to be Mia! "Yes, I have them all here. Now, you'll have to make the most powerful power containing items you can make," said Mia.

"I know. Meh heh heh...but tell me, why do you want this...item? I'll make it alright. I always keep my promises. But tell me why you want that so badly that you'd risk getting these?"

"Very well. I'll tell you. In exchange, you have to promise me you will not tell anyone else. It's..."

* * *

**Hope: And with that folks, we have a cliffhanger! Too bad, you won't get to know what's going on until after several chapters!**

**Konan: Define 'several.'**

**Hope: Like, maybe 30 chapters?**

**Konan: NO!**

**Hope: It's called waiting! Deal with it! Now, I won't update for a while due to schoolwork, but I will prevail! See ya!**


	12. Shortest, yet weirdest chapter yet

**Hope: Alright! New chapter!**

**Konan: Wait! We still haven't figured out who put Raichu and his minions in a coma!**

**Hope: Nobody except me!**

**Konan: So, who is it?**

**Hope: I'll give you all a hint, it's someone with super immense power and is 20 times stronger than you!**

**Konan: If that's the case, maybe he should fight Dialga! **

**Hope: Uh...you're not supposed to know about him yet, but whatever! Do the disclaimer!**

**Konan: Ok! Mage of hope does not own Pokemon, only the Pokemona Company does! **

* * *

"UP AND AT 'EM! IT'S MORNING!"

"Man...I hate getting up," yawned Konan.

"I though by now you would be used to it, Konan," said Natsu, rubbing his eyes. Then, Natsu and Konan heard some faint breathing coming from Mia's bed and looked at her. She seems to be slowly breathing and winching in pain.

"Mia! Are you ok?' asked Natsu.

"What? What happened?' asked Loudred.

"How the hell should I know?" said Konan. Then, Mia woke up and stood up from her bed.

"M-mia? Are you alright?" asked Natsu.

"Me? I'm fine. Don't worry," assured Mia, walking around perfectly safe.

"Really? For a second there, we thought you were in pain," said Konan, wiping some sweat off his forehead. "Hey, what's that weird red cloth completely covering your tail?"

Everyone looked to see a red cloth tied and covering Mia's tail. "Oh, I decided to go for a new look," said Mia.

"Doesn't really look much," said Loudred.

"Hey, I'm allowed to wear anything I want!" complained Mia.

"Whew! For a second, I thought your tail was injured," sighed Natsu in relief.

In reality, Mia was enduring some pain right now. She was hot and felt like she was trapped in a sultry stone room, and the heat radiating from her tail is like a plaque of microscopic busg eating her cells, or that her tail is covered in honey and bees were swarming around it. Still, Mia was pretty good at hiding her true feelings, so she walked aside Konan and the others quietly.

When they arrived in the briefing room, and just before Wigglytuff or Chatot showed up, other guild members were talking above themselves. Some asked Mia why was her tail covered up in a red cloth, and she'd just answer with the same answer she told Konan and the others. Finally, Chatot and Wigglytuff arrived, so it was time for the morning routine.

"...AND THREE! SMILES GO FOR MILES!"

"Alright, Pokemon! Time to get to work!"

"HOORAY!"

After everyone but Team Pokepals left, Chatot came up to Team Pokepals and ordered, "Alright! Time for you three to do your usual stuff! And Mia, why is your tail covered in a red cloth?"

"Oh, it's because of a new appearance!" answered Mia.

"I still highly doubt it," admitted Konan. Then, they finally arrived at the second floor to find some good requests, until they found one. "Hey guys! I found something!"

**"Dear exploration team,**

**We request help in capturing this unknown Pokemon who's nicknamed the 'Mystery Rogue.' He's so quick at knocking out other exploration teams, we couldn't confirm what kind of Pokemon he is. However, we do know he is very big and hides behind lots of clothing to hide his identity. Anyone who catches this Pokemon will be rewarded. -Magnezone from the Pokemon Police-" **

"This seems like the perfect Pokemon to catch!" said Konan.

"And what makes you think we're going after this guy? He could be another one of the Top Ten Criminals! Or if we're lucky, he's just another criminal, but instead, we don't know any of his abilites," said Mia.

"Mia's right, I don't think we should take this person," agreed Natsu.

"Oh come on, guys! We've taken down two of the Top Ten Criminals, we beated other criminals before, and we can do it again!"

"Well...I guess you're right," said Natsu.

**BOOM! **"The heck was that?!" wondered Konan.

"Let's check it out!" suggested Natsu. When Team Pokepals along with some other exploration teams got outside, they saw Loudred fighting against a Snorlax. Both seemed tired and really beaten uo, plus they were gasping for breath.

"Whoa! Looks like they're fighting again!" someone cheered.

"That's the third time this week!" someone else said.

"Hey, this looks like a fun fight!" cheered Konan. "Hey, Loudred! We'll be supporting ya all the way! 100 Gald on Snorlax!"

"500 Gald on Snorlax!" shouted Corphish besides him.

"1,000 Gald on Snorlax!" cheered Bidoof.

"That's your support?' asked Natsu to Konan.

"Oh come on! That's pro advise!"

"Uproar!" yelled Loudred. He stomped around, making blue soundwaves come from his mouth and towards his opponent, Snorlax, who slid back a bit due to the attack. Meanwhile, the others were covering their ears due to the noise.

"Belly Drum!" said Snorlax. He waves his body back and forth and taps his stomach with his hands three times like tapping a drum. His body became outlined in red, and his stomach growled.

"Idiot! That move may increase your attack power, but in exchange, you'll be be hungry!" shouted Loudred. "Screech!" He sucks in a gulp of air and shouts loudly, disorting the air and nearly breaking everyone's ears. However, it decreased Snorlax's defense and left him distracted, giving Loudred a chance. He tackled Snorlax to the ground and yelled, "Stomp!" He jumps into the air and stomped on Snorlax on the stomach, defeating him.

"...Huh," said Konan.

"Huh," agreed Corphish.

"Huh," said Bidoof. After that, everyone left, leaving only Team Pokepals left.

"Ha! I win!" said Loudred cheerfully. Then, Snorlax got up and walked away, despite being hungry.

"Hey, Loudred! Who was that?" asked Konan.

"Oh, that was just Snorlax," answered Loudred.

"Hey," said Snorlax to a Smeargle who was walking towards him. Then, they both walked together.

"Hey, don't you think Snorlax might be big enough to be that 'Mystery Rogue?' questioned Konan suspicously to Loudred.

"Snorlax? He's just a-"

"Bigger than a freakin' house?"

"Hahahahahahahahahahahahahhehaheh!" laughed Loudred, making Team Pokepals looked at him awkwardly. "But seriously, he's not someone you want to mess with. I know him. We've played chess."

"Huh..." said Konan. Then, he announced, "Follow that fatty!"

"I'm no fat! I'm just big boned!" yelled Loudred, running after Konan along with Mia and Natsu.

"No! The fat fatty!" corrected Konan, refering to Snorlax. Finally, they arrived somewhere in the middle of Treasure Town, and ran in front of Snorlax and his friend, Smeargle. "Alright, you! Fight! You! Me! Now! Triangles!"

"What?" questioned Snorlax, eating an Oran Berry.

"Boy, don't you pretend you didn't hear me. I know you the Mystery Rogue!" accused Konan.

'Come on, Snorlax. Let's ghet out of here before this guy speaks any more nonsense," wanred Smeargle as he grabbed his friend's hand and walked away.

"Oh no you didn't! You are not walking away from me!" shouted Konan, thrashing his arms around like a child as Loudred as grabbing hold of him.

"Just leave them alone, Konan! It can't be them," said Natsu.

"I don't know, Natsu. Something doesn't seem right," said Konan, still suspicous.

"So, if you're going to catch the Mystery Rogue, let me come too!" requested Loudred. "I've got to make him pay!"

"What about sentry duty?" asked Mia.

"Oh don't worry! Diglett and his dad have it under control," said Loudred. "Anyways, last time I fought that Mytsery Rogue, it was in Mt. Bristle!"

'Well, what are we waiting for? Let's go!"

* * *

_Mt. Bristle B7F and six hours later... _

"You sure he's here, Loudred?" asked Mia.

"Positive!" said Loudred.

"So, here's the plan!" announced Konan. "While Natsu distracts him with a game of checkers, I unmask him!"

"I don't think the Mystery Rogue plays checkers," pointed out Natsu.

"You don't know that, Natsu!"

'We've been sitting here for hours! Can we please go back?" whined Natsu.

"No!...We're waiting!"

"What for?"

"Ahhhhhhh!" a scream was heard.

"There it is!" said Konan as he ran to where the scream was with the others following him. They then spotted a Machop on the ground and came up to him. "Which way did the Pokemon who attacked you go?"

"I just...fell over," replied Machop, looking perfectly fine.

"Then what the hell was with the scream?' asked Konan.

"Um...I was very tir-"

"Oh, you're useless!" said Konan irritated before he and the rest ran into a different direction. About a few minutes later, they were breathing heavily encountered a Machop laying on the ground. "Which...way...did...he-"

"Me again!"

"God damnit!" wheezed Konan. Then, he and the others staretd running off again. Just when they were about to collasp, they saw a large Pokemon wearing a large trenchcoat that covered nearly his whoel body and he wore a strange mask too.

"Hold it right there, big guy!" shouted Loudred, still catching his breath. "You've got nowhere to hide now!"

The Pokemon rumored to be the Mystery Rogue turned around and faced Team Pokepals and Loudred. Konan, after catching his breath, pointed to the Mystery Rogue and demanded, "Fight."

"Alright," said the Mystery Rodue, with a low voice.

"Me and Loudred will handle this!" ordered Konan.

"For once, I agree with the guy!" agreed Loudred, at Konan's side, ready to fight.

"I'll go first!" declared Konan, pulling a random item out from his bag, which happened to be an Oran Berry. "Alright! I need a boost up before fighting!" With that, he took a bite, but clutched his stomach in pain. "Oh no...it was an Oren Berry! Damnit!"

"That's a nice looking Oran Berry. I look forward to taking it from you," spoke Mystery Rogue.

"You know what?" said Konan, recovering a bit. "Here!" He threw the Oren Berry at Mystery Rogue's face. "Just, f***ing have it!"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa! That's not how it works! We're meant to beat you first and then take your items!" said surprisely Smeragle who appeared from behind a large rock. "And Snorlax, take off the freakin' disguise, you look ridiculous! I can't even look at you for two seconds with that thing on!"

"But it's cold outside, boss!" complained Snorlax, who happened to be the Mystery Rogue.

"Do it, stupid!"

"Ok..."

"Huh?! Snorlax?! Smeragle?! You guys are the Mystery Rogues?!" exclaimed Natsu, Mia, and Loudred.

Konan, however, was not amused or surprised. "No! I don't care! I knew it was you guys all along! I even said-I did say it was those guys, Natsu."

"It's true. He did say that."

"That's impossible!" gasped Smeargle.

"How did he know?!" wondered Snorlax.

"I knew! It was obvious! You'd have to be freakin' morons not to guess it was you two!" shouted Konan, more irritated than usual. He received glares from Mia, Natsu, and Loudred, but the three of them nodded in agreement despite the facts that they were being called morons. "Seriously! Why does this crap always happen here?!"

"Konan! Just calm down!" cried Natsu.

"No! I've been pissed off all day about this! It happens, all. The Freakin'. TIME. A few days ago it was freakin' SOLARBEAM, yesterday was Team freakin' Skull, today's a Mystery Rogue, and tonight, the world's probably going to end! THIS PLACE IS CRAZY! Man, you two are idiots if you think stealing anything will make people happy!"

"..." Everyone just stared at Konan.

"...I see what you're talking about, Konan," said Smeargle slowly.

"W-what?"

"You're saying that we should quit. Our evil ways."

"Wha-but-you-ah-"

"You're saying we shouldn't travel the path of venegance."

"I never said any of those things!"

"You have opened our eyes, Konan!" replied Smeargle, holding out a bag full of Oran Berries, or possibly Oren Berries.

"No..."

"We'll return everything we stoled and turn ourselves in!"

"But first, we must give you this bag of Oran Berries as a reward!" thanked Snorlax.

"No, no, no, no-" Then, Konan got interrupted when the bag of Oran Berries hit him on the face. "*sigh* Thanks..."

* * *

After Snorlax and Smeargle had returned everything they stolen and turned themselves in to the Pokemon Police, Team Pokepals and Loudred received some rewards. The four of them, however, were still stunned over what had just happened. Heck, they didn't even have to fight, let alone force Snorlax and Smeargle to surrender. With that, it just became a strange and awkward day.

After dinner, Konan decided to ask Chatot a question. "Chatot, I have to talk to you. And this is serious."

Some Pokemon, Like Corphish, Bidoof, Sunflora, Chimecho, Loudred, Diglett, Dugtrio, Team New Sunshine, and Team Triolet gasped. They began to whisper things like, "Konan's being serious?" or "The world's going to end!"

Konan glared annoyingly at everyone. "Oh shut up, guys!" Then, he turned back to Chatot and asked, "So, what do you know about humans?"

_'Straight to the point!' _thought Natsu and Mia, shocked.

Chatot was surprised. "Squawk! Humans? Why do you want to know?"

"Just curious, that's all. So, what do you know about them? Are there some in this world? How come we haven't seen any?"

Chatot answered, "Hold on! One at a time! Ahem. Anyways, humans are extinct as of today."

"Oh my gosh! Why?" asked Sunflora.

"We don't know. All we know is that they are extinct," replied Chatot.

"Huh," said Konan, disappointed. "Well, is there anything about a human turning into a Pokemon?"

"Meh heh heh...I do know one legend," replied Croagunk.

"Alright," said Konan, a bit creeped out from the evil laughter. "What's the legend?"

"The legend..." spoke Croagunk.

"Yeah, the legend."

"The legend."

"That's right. The legend."

"The legend."

"Right. What's the legend?"

"What is the legend?"

"That's what I'm asking."

"The legend. What is it? That is what you are asking!"

* * *

_90 minutes later... _

Mia looked bored, Natsu was reading a big book, Loudred was snoring loudly, Claire was waiting patiently, Autumn, Devin, and the rest of the members of Team Sunshine looked pissed and ready to tear Croagunk apart if he didn't stop with his ranting, and the others went to bed, except for Chatot.

"...So what you are asking me is-what is the legend of a human turning into a Pokemon that was from a long time ago?"

"Just tell me what the legend is!" shouted Konan, impatient.

"Very well. You've waited this long," said Croagunk, amused that he was making people mad because he was asking too many questions. The legend is-"

"Yes?"

"Is-"

"Yes?"

"You sure you're ready for this?"

"GIVE ME THE DAMN ANSWER!"

"Alright! A human boy pulled on a Ninetail's tail and got a thousand year curse that turned him into a Pokemon. The end."

Everyone blinked in surprise. Then-

"WHAT?! YOU MEAN I SPENT 90 FREAKIN' MINUTES LISTENING TO YOU RANT ON WHEN I COULD HAVE LISTEN TO A FREAKIN' LEGEND THAT LASTED FOR ONE MINUTE?!"

"Yes. Meh heh heh...what are you going to do about it?"

Konan turned to Chatot and asked, "Chatot, can I see that mallet of yours?"

* * *

"You didn't have to hit Croagunk that hard, you know," said Natsu as his team got ready for bed.

"Oh, he deserved it! Making me wait that long," grumbled Konan.

"You know, with that little info, it's going to be hard finding out who you are," reminded Mia.

"Hey, do you think a curse did this?" asked Natsu.

"Knowing Konan's attitude, probably," said Mia.

"Hey! I resent that!" said Konan. "Besides, I don't think I would pull a tail! Imagine if I was some sort of human who came from the future to change the past! Then again, that would be impossible, so we'll just have to gather more info. Well, goodnight guys!"

* * *

**Hope: And done!**

**Konan: What was the point in putting this chapter?!**

**Hope: For humor! I did promise the readers that! Anyways, I'm not sure when I'll update this again, so don't get your hopes too high, people! See ya!**


	13. Sports Day special!

**Hope: Hey everyone! Today's chapter is going to be a special one! Why? It just is!**

**Konan: Can't you give us a hint?**

**Hope: Well, for starters, there are no requests for today, and everyone will fight each other!**

**Konan: So it's like a tournament? Awesome!**

**Hope: Eh, something like that. But anyways, find out soon! Mia, the disclaimer!**

**Mia: Mage of Hope does not own Pokemon, only the Pokemon Company does! **

* * *

"UP AND AT 'EM! IT'S MORNING! AND HURRY UP! HURRY UP! HURRY UP! HURRY UP!"

"ALRIGHT! Jeez!" shouted back Konan when he got sick of hearing Loudred to hurry something up. What could be so important that Loudred had to practically scream in their ears just to wake p quickly. It wasn't usually like that.

"What's going on, Loudred? You seem more enthusiastic than usual," replied Natsu.

"Chatot and the Guildmaster are going to announce something really important! And we don't do requests or our jobs today!" answered Loudred, excited.

"Wait, what was that last line?" asked Konan, rubbing his ears so that he could understand what he said.

"I said we don't have to do any requests or jobs today!"

"Really?! Awesome!" With that said, Konan tossed his blanket at the air and got out of his bed, rushing into the briefing room. The others followed him afterwards.

"...AND THREE! SMILES GO FOR MILES!"

"Alright Pokemon!" announced Chatot. "Today's a special day! You know why? Because instead of doing our regular jobs, today's Sports Day!"

With that announced, lots of Pokemon began to chatter excitedly, like, "Sports Day?!" or "About time it came!" or "What kind of activites are going to be played this year?!"

"For all of those who don't know are are new to this, Sports Day is a full day where you get to compete in sports, and this event is only once a year," explained Chatot. "However, there are rules of course. And only several selected are allowed to join! We'll pick the names from this box! So, everyone, please write down your name in a piece of paper!"

"Oh boy! I hope we get chosen!" said Konan excitedly, writing down his name.

Afetr everyone wrote down their names and placed them in the box, Chatot said, "Ok! I will now select the names1 But first, we need two people to do the commentary work during the Sports events. However, they will not participate in the events, but they do have a front row seat!"

Lots of Pokemon began to chatter again, "That never happened before!" or "Aw, no sports for today? I don't want to be one!" or "Ooh! Front row seats!"

"Alright! I will now announce the two Pokemon who will do commentary work!" announced Chatot with two pieces of paper in his hands. "And...it's Loudred and Corphish!"

"Yeah!" both boys cheered as they gave each other a high five.

"And now, I will announce who will participate in the events! Devin, Claire, Autumn, (From Team Triolet) Cynder, Kitty, Thunder, Shine, (Team New Sunshine) Sunflora, Chimecho, Croagunk, Bidoof, Diglett, Dugtrio, Mia, Natsu, and Konan! Oh, and Chatot!... Wait, WHAT?!"

"Hahahahaha! This is going to be great! I can finally pay back Chatot for all the times he did to me!" crackled Konan.

"I'm with you, Konan!" agreed Cynder, rubbing his hands together micheviously.

Everyone else sweatdropped while Chatot was wondering how he was going to get out of this situation frantically. Everyone but Chatot thought, _'Poor Chatot. I feel bad for him.' _

"W-WHO PUT MY NAME IN THE BOX?!" squawked Chatot angrily.

"Heheheh! That was me, Chatot! Everyone else was participating, so I thought I'd secretly put your name in the box so that you wouldn't be alone!" said Wigglytuff cheerfully.

Chatot was speechless and could only stare at Wigglytuff while gawking. For Konan and Cynder, his face was PRICELESS. "Well! Looks like everyone's all set! Let's go!" cheered Wigglytuff.

"HOORAY!" everyone cheered before running outside. When arriving in the middle of Treasure Town, a lot of the citizens were all sitting in rows of seats so that they could see the events as spectators. Loudred and Corphish were really rexcited because they had the front seats and they get to do commentary work.

Meanwhile, all of the participants were getting ready for the events. Loudred and Corphish were testing their microphones to see if they were working. "Alright folks! Time for the Sports Day events to begin!" announced Corphish. "Um...let's see...Loudred, what event is supposed to go first?"

"Um...let's see," aid Loudred, searching through the papers. "Let's see...um..."

"Aren't you done yet?"

"Hold on! Hold on! Oh! I got it! The first event is...um...why does it say, sing My Little Ponies when no one's around at night?"

Immediantly, Chatot grabbed the paper Loudred was holding and ripped it up. Then, he gave Loudred another piece of paper and walked away in embarrassment. "...Never mind!" announced Corphish. "The first event is dodgeball!"

After explaining the rules about dodgeball, everyone got into two teams. Team A, Konan, Cynder, Shine, Mia, Autumn, Devin, Dugtrio, and Diglett. Team B is Claire, Kitty, Thunder, Sunflora, Chatot, Chimecho, Bidoof, and Croagunk! Unfortunely, since there are 17 Pokemon participating, Natsu was force to not participate in the dodgeball game. The first team to get all of the members of the opposite out, they win!

Loudred announced, "It is a beautiful day for the-"

**BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! **Suddenly, some Pokemon played some vuvuzelas and interrupted the commentary. More Pokemon pulled out more vuvzelas and started playing as well, irritating Loudred more and more until-

**Pardon us as we remove all the vuvuzelas in the vicinity **

Loudred announced again for the second time, "It is a beautiful day for the events! On our right, we have Team A, which the members are Konan, Cynder, Shine, Mia, Autumn, Devin, Dugtrio, and Diglett. On our left, we have Team B, which is Claire, Kitty, Thunder, Sunflora, Chatot, Chimecho, Bidoof, and Croagunk. Unfortunely, one of the candidates, Natsu, could not fit for this event, but he will appear in the other events soon!"

"The rules are simple!" announced Corphish. "If you get hit by the ball, you're out! If you catch the ball, the thrower gets sent out, and the catcher gets to bring another team member out on the court! If you're holding a ball, you can use it to deflect a ball, but if it knocks the ball out of your hands, you're out. Also, not use of moves are allowed, and no using Dig either, or you're automatically out!"

Meanwhile, both Teams were getting ready to play dodgeball. Chatot was hiding behind Chimecho out of fear of being hit by dodgebals that would mostly be after him from Konan and Cynder, Bidoof was nervous, Shine and Mia were glaring at each other despite the fact that they are on the same team, and Konan and Cynder looked ready to happily kill Chatot. (Not literally though)

"Both teams ready?" asked Loudred. "Best of 3 games win! In three...two...one! Play!"

Each member from both teams picked up a ball each, carefully strategizing and prepared to dodge or deflect whenever someone's ready to throw a ball. Autumn was the first to throw the ball and threw it towards Sunflora. However, Sunflora dodged the ball and threw her ball as hard as she could. Unfortunely, it hit one of the spectators and knocked them out cold.

"You're out!" shouted Loudred. "Corphish forgot to mention, but if you hit a spectator from the outskirts, you're out!"

"Oh my gosh! No way!" cried Sunflora as she sat down into a seat.

"Ahhhhhhhh!" cried out Konan like he was Tarzan. He threw his ball at Thunder so hard that he slid and fell back against a tree.

"Ow!" he shouted, clutching his stomach.

"You're out, Thunder!" announced Corphish.

"Time to show everyone what I'm capable of!" said Bidoof, proudly.

"Bring it on!" taunted Cynder, motioning Bidoof with his fingers.

Bidoof threw the ball to the ground so hard, it went up to the air...and fell to the ground, not harming anymore. In addition, the ball landed on Team A's side. Cynder grinned and took the ball before throwing it at Bidoof, making him out of the game.

Chatot decided to take a random person out of the game and threw his ball at someone. At that moment, Diglett turned to his father, Dugtrio and asked, 'Dad, how are we supposed to hold a ball when we don't even have hands?"

Then, Diglett got hit by the dodgeball Chatot threw and dug down because he was no longer part of the game. "That felt good! I might do that again!" exclaimed Chatot. He grabbed a ball from Chimecho and threw it at Dugtrio. Before Dugtrio could dodge or get out of the way, Cynder caught the ball in time, thus making Chatot out of the game.

"Hey! I wanted to get Chatot out!" complained Konan.

"Better luck next time, Konan!" teased Cynder. "Alright! I choose Diglett to come back!"

"Thanks, Cynder!" thanked Diglett.

"Just focus on dodging the balls, so that there'll be more balls on our side!" informed Cynder.

"You got it!" said both Dugtrio and Diglett.

Konan threw his ball at Claire next, but Clarie ducked and counter attacked by throwing it back at Konan. Konan ducked too, and it hit Dugtrio. "Ah! I'm so sorry, Dugtrio!" apologized Claire.

Then, Mia took this distraction as a chance to strike back, so she threw her ball at Claire, making her out of the game.

A few minutes later, there were only two members of each team left. Team A only had Shine and Devin, while Team B had Kitty and Chimecho left. Both Kitty and Chimecho threw their balls towards Shine. Shine easily dodged the first ball, but received a ball at her stomach, making her out.

Now, there was only Devin left as the two girls from Team B were glaring micheviously at the only male left. "Good luck, Devin!" shouted Konan.

"You can do it!" shouted Cynder.

"Take those two suckers down!"

"They're barbarians!"

"What?!" exclaiemd both girls from Team B.

Devin threw spun his ball around with one finger before throwing it at Chimecho. Chimecho dodged out of the way, but the ball hit a tree and bounced back so it could hit Kitty.

"...Whoa! That is ONE tough ball to dodge!" commented Loudred.

Kitty threw her ball towards Devin, but he dodged. Then, he threw his ball so fast at Kitty, she didn't see it coming, so she was too defeated, making Team A the winner for the first round and earning them 1 point.

"Yeah! Go Devin! Go Devin!" cheered Team A as they ran around Devin, giving him high fives.

Meanwhile, Team B was forming a different strategy. "We can do this! We just have to believe in ourselves!" cheered Bidoof.

"Oh, I believe. I believe that we're going to lose!" groaned Sunflora.

"You should talk!" argued Kitty.

"Oh come on! I was warming up! Just give me a chance! Just give all the balls to me!" said Sunflora. "I'll win this game in no time!"

"Fine! Just try to aim for the other side, ok?" said Chatot.

"...And we're back! Let the second round begin!" announced Corphish. The two teams were facing off again, only this time, Sunflora had all of the balls her team had, making everyone confused.

Sunflora spun around, throwing her balls on by one, but her aim was really bad. The seven balls she threw were all around the directions, but the eighth ball managed to get Shine out of the game.

"Finally!" sighed Kitty in relief.

"Um...due to the rules, if one ball hit the spectator, that thrower is out, so Sunflora is out!" announced Loudred.

"OK! I CANNOT TAKE IT ANYMORE! I HAVE TO HIT CHATOT!" shouted Konan. He grabbed Mia's and Diglett's balls and hit two random Pokemon from Team B, which happened to be Kitty and Chimecho. He then grabbed Dugtrio, Devin, and Autumn's balls and threw all three of them at once, hitting Chatot,(finally!)Claire, and Croagunk.

The rest of his team members handed all of their balls to Konan and he took out all of the members of Team B, which made Team A 2 points.

"Yeah!" cheered the rest of Team A as they ran towards Konan.

"Hah...I don't know what got into me," admitted Konan proudly.

"Hey! It's 2-0! How does it feel?" asked Shine to Team B.

"...Not very good," said Bidoof, depressed.

"Hey! It's not over!" encouraged Kitty.

"It's totally over," said Claire.

"Definitely," agreed Chatot.

"I'd have to agree," said Thunder.

"Ok, so this is bad," replied Kitty as she and her team formed a strategy. "One more game, and we lose the event! We can't have that! So, we'll all ambush someone from Team A and take that person out first using all our balls, then we move to one person, then another!"

"Hey, that sounds like a good idea," said Claire.

"Meh heh heh! I couldn't care less," said Croagunk.

"Play ball!" announced Corphish. Shine and Mia threw their balls first, but Croagunk and Bidoof dodged them. Then, gathering two extra balls, Thunder, Claire, Kitty, and Croagunk threw their balls at Shine first, knocking her out. Then, they slowly threw their balls at one member at Team A, one by one. Soon, Team B won the round, earning them 1 point.

"Yeah! I think we should do the same thing all over again!" suggested Kitty.

"I agree!" said Thunder.

"Me too!" said Sunflora.

"Me three!' said Bidoof.

Meanwhile, Team A was strategizing as well. "Ok, we are NOT losing another game to these guys, got it?" said Shine.

"Yeah! There's no way we'll lose!" cheered Cynder and Konan.

Unfortunely, ten seconds later, after the game started, Team A lose again, and Team B got 2 points now, making both teams tied.

"Ok! This is it! The final tie breaking game!" announced Loudred. "Game on!"

The second the final round started, balls were being thrown, dodged, or caught. Members from each team were getting out, or pulled back into the game. Soon, it was Cynder from Team A vs Bidoof from Team B.

"Ooh! The final matchdown! Cynder from Team A vs Bidoof from Team B! Who will prevail?!" announced Corphish, excited.

"Oh, come on! We all know Cynder's gonna win!" said Mia. "Go, Cynder!"

Team B members who were already out looked shocked at the horror of them losing and thought, _'We're doomed!' _

'Sorry dude," said Cynder, picking up four balls. "But you gotta go down!" With that, he threw three of his balls towards Bidoof with great accuracy.

Bidoof, however, had other plans. He jumped to dodge the first ball, jumped out of the way to avoid the second, and jumped again to dodge the third ball. Cynder threw his last ball and like it was in slow motion, Bidoof leaned back to dodge the last ball and it barely touched his nose. However, he did dodge all four of them perfectly.

Everyone was speechless and shocked. Croagunk could only say one word. "Whoa."

"Take this!" shouted Cynder, throwing his last and fifth ball towards Bidoof. The ball hit Bidoof so hard, he slid back and hit a tree from behind, making the spectators gasp. Then, Bidoof held up the ball that he caught and the crowd cheered, making Team B win the whole event.

"...IT'S A MIRACLE! TEAM B'S WEAKEST MEMBER HAS FOUGHT OFF AGAINST TEAM B'S POWERFUL MEMBER! AND WON!" cheered Loudred.

"With that, the second event will come!" announced Corphish. "We'll be bringing you this special sonic-speed ground battle live from the Treasure Town grounds! We will explain everything throughout the whole race! That's right, folks! The second event is a race! Unfortunely, only eight teams will be selected, with two people per team!"

"And we've just now declared which one's going to be in the race and who's riding which vehicle!" announced Loudred. "The Cynder and Mia team picked Unit Car!" Cynder and Mia received a car that was red. (Hey, don't ask why I decided to put cars in this story, because I wanted to)

"Let's do everything we can to beat the others!" cheered Mia.

"That was my intention as well!" agreed Cynder.

"The Thunder and Shine team chose Unit Honeymoon!" announced Corphish, showing Thunder and Shine in a car meant for newly lovers.

"What?!" shouted both of them. "I'm not teaming up with him/her!"

"Next is the Team Konan and Devin team! And theirs is Unit Dragster!" It then showed Konan and Devin in a blue dragster car.

"Yeah! We're going to come first place!" said Konan determined.

"The Chatot and Autumn team chose a granny bike!"

"Why a granny bike?!" shouted Chatot, who was on the basket and Autumn the one riding.

"Team Bidoof and Sunflora chose Unit Truck!" Sunflora and Bidoof were shown inside a big truck.

"At least it's big and has lots of space," commented Sunflora.

"Next, Team Dugtrio and Diglett chose Unit Underground! It's not a vehicle, but it allows the two of them to travel underground! But we can't give them any directions!"

"Well, at least we can travel underground," said Diglett.

"Right, my son!"

"And finally, we have Team Kitty and Natsu! And they chose Unit Motorcycle!" Both of them were shown wearing helmets, with Kitty in the front, and Natsu in the back.

"U-um, Kitty? Are you sure you got this?" asked Natsu nervously.

"Don't worry, Natsu! I'm a pro!" ensured Kitty.

"Liar! You've never even rode a motorcycle before!" called Cynder.

"Alright! I see a big battle approaching!" cheered Corphish. "Loudred, what do you think?"

"I think this is going to be AWESOME!" cheered Loudred. "Let the race begin! Whcih team will emergy victorious? In three...two...one...ZERO! GO!"

Immediantly, everyone rode their vehicles and rode off. Just then, a flash of blue past all of the vehicles. "Oh! Who just took the lead with incredible speed?!" exclaimed Corphish. "And it's...Unit Dragster!"

"Sorry, but we're winning this!" said Devin.

"Yeah! Unit Dragster's too awesome!" cheered Konan.

"Hey, Cynder?" wondered Mia. "Did you know? Dragsters...can't turn."

**BOOM! **Right on cue, Unit Dragster crashed into a tree and got destroyed, making Konan and Devin the first to lose.

"Whoa! Two losers already! And it's just the start of the race!" announced Corphish. "At the lead, we have Unit Honeymoon and Unit Car! Also, Unit Truck is close behind!"

"This vehicle may be a classic car, but it's powerful," commented Mia.

"We'll get them here!" said Cynder. 'Keep driving, Mia-huh?" Team Thunder and Shine took a different turn towards the sign that said, "Shortcut."

"Hey, Shine! Why did you turn into the wrong direction?!" shouted Thunder through the wind.

"There was a shortcut sign right there! Therefore, we'll win!"

"Idiot! Signs like that will only trick us and whoa! AAAAAHHHHHHHHH!" After crossing the sign, Unit Honeymoon had fell from Sharpedo Bluff and into the sea. They weren't hurt, but they were out of the race.

"And Team Thunder and Shine are out! Hope they have a good swim!" teased Corphish. "And it looks like Unit Truck's getting closer...closer...and it's ahead!"

Suddenly, something blurry went past the two leading Units. The blurry figure crashed past Unit Truck, causing the truck to fall down a hill.

"Ow..." groaned Bidoof. Their truck was unable to go anywhere farther, so that means that Team Bidoof and Sunflora are out.

"And...Team Bidoof and Sunflora are out! Who's next?!" exclaimed Loudred.

"AAAAHHHHHH! K-KITTY! SLOW DOWN!" shouted Natsu.

"NO WAY! I'M HAVING THE JOY OF MY LIFE!" cheered Kitty.

"Ah! So it was Natsu and Kitty!" said Mia.

"I was wondering where they were," admitted Cynder.

"WHOA! WE'RE GOING TO WIN! WE'RE GOING TO WIN!" cheered Kitty. Then, she made a wrong turn and ended up with her, the motorcycle, and Natsu off Sharpedo Bluff, and into the ocea, like Team Thunder and Shine.

"...What was that?" wondered Cynder.

"Who cares! One less team, one step closer to winning!" cheered Mia.

"Ooh! And Team Kitty and Natsu are out!" said Corphish. "Let's see, Team Chatot and Autumn, and Team Diglett and Dugtrio are left! But we haven't seen the two teams!"

"I'm sure we're going to win!" said Mia as she took a curve.

"No, I'll overtake you two," said a voice from behind. It turned out to be Autumn and Chatot, riding as fast as they could. Well, it was Autumn riding, and Chatot in the basket of the granny bike. Plus, they went right past Team Mia and Cynder during the curve of the road.

"Isn't that a bicycle?!" exclaimed Mia.

"Damn that granny bike!" cursed Cynder annoyingly. Then, unexpedtely, like the other two teams, Team Autumn and Chatot went too fast, that they fell from Sharpedo Bluf, and into the ocean, but it looked like a figure from E.T. (You know, the movie E.T., where someone was riding a bike into the night sky? That scene? Imagine that with Autumn and Chatot)

"...Ok! The finals are approaching! We'll need a photo finish or an oil painting!" announced Loudred. "And Team Mia and Cynder are in the lead so far! And they're almost close! And..."

**FLASH! **"Let's see the photo finish!" declared Loudred as he took the picture from the photographer who took it. "And the winner is...Team Diglett and Dugtrio!"

"WHAT?!" shouted both Mia and Cynder as they pushed Loudred aside to see the picture. It was true. Just before their team reached the finish line, Dugtrio and his son were right in front of the finish line.

Meanwhile, Dugtrio and Diglett were beign cheered and praised by the audience happily. Mia sighed. 'Well, at least we got in second place."

"Yeah."

With that, the rest of the events continued. But no matter who won, everyone knew that it was a day to have fun all day.

* * *

**Hope: Now, wasn't that fun?**

**Konan: No! We lost!**

**Hope: Like I said, it didn't matter who won! All that mattered was having fun!**

**Konan: *mumbles***

**Hope: Anyways, this was just a special! Just a few more chapters before the expedition arc begins! See ya!**


End file.
